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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28112523">A Black Eagles Family Christmas</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sniperdoodle/pseuds/shutupimshakira'>shutupimshakira (Sniperdoodle)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>A Muppet Family Christmas, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas, Embedded Images, F/F, F/M, Family, Hijinks &amp; Shenanigans, Meeting the Parents, also features hildagard as exes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 22:53:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>15,700</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28112523</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sniperdoodle/pseuds/shutupimshakira</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              
<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>“Byleth,” Edelgard asks once again. “Are you sure your parents will like me?”</p>
  <p>“Of course,” Byleth reassures her, just like she had done so many times that day. She doesn’t look away from the road, but places a hand on Edelgard’s knee, “I know they’ll love you, just like I do.”</p>
</blockquote>Edelgard is heading home for the holidays, or more precisely, Byleth’s home . . . to meet her parents.<p>This is farther than she’s ever gotten with any of her previous partners, so saying that she’s nervous is an understatement.  And it might not just be that, there’s also the fact that all her friends are still back at Garreg Mach. . . </p>
<p>Well, no matter what happens, just remember: be careful of the icy patch.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dorothea Arnault/Ingrid Brandl Galatea, Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth, Jeralt Reus Eisner/Sitri Eisner | Byleth's Mother</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>116</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. haul out the holly, put up the tree before my spirit falls again</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Well, happy holidays to everyone and to those in college: I hope you're doing your best to survive finals season like me. Which means that I decided to to write a Christmas FE:3H fic. Anyways, enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>           “<em>Haul out the holly, put up the tree before my spirit falls again, fill up the stockings, we may be rushing things but deck the halls again now! For we need a little Christmas, right this very minute, candles in the window-</em>”</p>
<p>            Edelgard listens to Byleth hum along to the radio as they drive, the lush forest turning white as winter flurries cover the landscape in snow. She hasn’t been this far north since she was a little girl, and the beautiful, sparkling, landscape calms her nerves a little bit. Only a little. </p>
<p>            “Byleth,” Edelgard asks once again. “Are you sure your parents will like me?”</p>
<p>            “Of course,” Byleth reassures her, just like she has done so many times that day. She doesn’t look away from the road, but places a hand on Edelgard’s knee, “I know they’ll love you, just like I do.”</p>
<p>            Still, Byleth’s words can’t temper Edelgard’s nerves. She had never gotten this far with anyone she’s dated, so meeting the parents is unknown territory. That, plus her own terrible relationship with her family and the fact that she’s spent the last few Christmases partying with her friends in a non-traditional sense does not give her confidence. But, when Byleth asked her to come home with her for Christmas and flashed her puppy-dog eyes, Edelgard couldn’t say no. She tries to forget her nerves, focusing on the landscape once again. </p>
<p>            “I should have brought my easel and paints,” Edelgard mumbles. They usually don’t get this much snow in the college town of Garreg Mach, or Enbarr where she grew up.</p>
<p>            Within ten minutes, they’re turning off the highway on a dirt road that leads to a quaint, white farmhouse that has started to blend into the white background. </p>
<p>            As soon as Byleth and Edelgard step out of the former’s truck, the door of the farmhouse swings open and a woman who looks a lot like Byleth steps out. She must be Byleth’s mother, Sitri Eisner. Her hair is lighter than Byleth’s blue, and her kind eyes are the same shade as her daughter’s. </p>
<p>            “Byleth!” Sitri calls, and wraps Byleth in a tight hug with no mind to the snow dusting her jacket. “Oh, I missed you so much!”</p>
<p>            “I was up last month for Thanksgiving, Mom,” Byleth points out, but hugs her mother back. When Sitri finally lets go, Byleth steps back and holds out a hand for Edelgard to take, “And Mom, this is Edelgard.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard isn’t too sure on what to do. She holds out a hand to shake but finds herself pulled into a warm hug, “It’s so good to finally meet you, Edelgard! I’ve heard so much about you from Byleth.”</p>
<p>            “It’s . . . good to meet you too, Mrs. Eisner,” Edelgard says. </p>
<p>            “Please, call me Sitri,” she says as she steps back. “Now, come in! It’s too cold to stay outside for too long. And please be careful of the icy patch.”</p>
<p>            Sitri rushes them inside where it’s warm, and Edelgard manages to slip on the icy patch. Byleth steadies her with a hand on her shoulder so she doesn’t fall on her ass and embarrass herself</p>
<p>            Inside, the farmhouse is warm and decorated for Christmas. Ivy is wound around the bannister leading to the second floor. Splashes of red and gold cover the living room and stockings hang over the fireplace. But . . . there’s no Christmas tree. </p>
<p>            Byleth notices this too, “You haven’t put up the tree yet?”</p>
<p>            “Your father wanted to wait for you two to arrive so you could pick out one together,” Sitri explains. “He’s out getting firewood right now, but he’ll want to chop down a tree before the snow gets too thick.”</p>
<p>            “A real tree?” Edelgard asks. Byleth nods in response. </p>
<p>            Edelgard has never had a real tree for Christmas. As a child, the tree they had was grand but . . . fake. The Black Eagles found a rainbow Christmas tree a couple years ago, and while she was fond of their gay tree, it also clearly wasn’t real.   </p>
<p>            (When she thinks of the Black Eagles, her friends she has spent the holidays with since moving to Garreg Mach, she feels a pang of sadness. She doesn’t know why, and she doesn’t think too hard on it).</p>
<p>            “Why don’t you two take your bags up to Byleth’s room? I’ll let you get settled in as we wait for Jeralt to get back. Then we can all have dinner together.”</p>
<p>            Byleth leads Edelgard up the stairs to a small bedroom. As soon as she steps in, it hits her that she’s in Byleth’s childhood bedroom. This is where her girlfriend grew up. It looks a lot like what her apartment looked like before the two of them moved in together, lots of books scattered about, sports equipment shoved into one corner, and a smattering of personal touches. Above her orderly desk, there’s a couple polaroids of Byleth and her parents, her high school hockey team, and . . . one of Byleth and Edelgard.</p>
<p>            “I put that there when I came up last time” Byleth admits when she catches Edelgard glancing at the wall of photos. She sits down on her bed and smiles, “I was missing you.”</p>
<p>            “I missed you too, even though you were only gone for a couple days,” Edelgard admits, walking over and slotting herself between Byleth’s legs. She leans down to kiss her forehead as Byleth wraps her arms around Edelgard’s waist, “I’m glad we don’t have to be apart for Christmas.”</p>
<p>            “Even though you’re nervous about spending it with my parents?” Byleth checks. </p>
<p>“Yes,” Edelgard admits. “I don’t regret coming here with you . . . though I think I may be missing the Black Eagles more than I expected.”</p>
<p>            As soon as she says it, Byleth’s eyes go wide and she glances away, the same look she gets on her face when she’s hiding something. She rubs the back of her head, “Well, I <em>may</em> have a solution for that but-”</p>
<p>            She doesn’t get the chance to finish the sentence as the door to the room opens up and a gruff man’s voice comes in, “Hey kid, welcome home-” a tall man with dusty blonde hair stands in the doorway, and cuts off as he notices how close Byleth and Edelgard are. He starts to close it as he realizes he just walked in on their personal moment. </p>
<p>            “It’s alright Dad,” Byleth sighs as Edelgard steps back, going red as she realizes that Byleth’s dad just caught them . . . well, he didn’t catch them doing anything <em>bad. </em>At least they were just being a normal couple but it’s the principle of having one’s privacy invaded. </p>
<p>            The door opens up a crack, “Are you sure? It looks like you and your girlfriend were . . . <em>busy</em>.”</p>
<p>            “Don’t say it like that,” Byleth gets up and opens the door all the way. “Hi Dad.”</p>
<p>            “Hi,” Jeralt responds as he ruffles Byleth’s already-messy hair. “Welcome back home. I assume that’s Edelgard, with how close you two were.”</p>
<p>            “Yes, that’s Edelgard,” Byleth confirms. </p>
<p>            Trying to not make a fool of herself, Edelgard steps forward and straightens out her spine, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.”</p>
<p>            “Sir?” Jeralt echoes. “That’s the first time in a long time anyone’s called me ‘sir’. Just call me Jeralt, kid.”</p>
<p>            “This is also the first time in a long time anyone’s called me kid,” Edelgard retorts before she even thinks it over. Shit, there goes not making a fool of herself. </p>
<p>            Thankfully, Jeralt doesn’t seem offended by it. He just laughs and claps his hand on Byleth’s back, “I like her, Byleth.”</p>
<p>            “I like her too,” Byleth says. Edelgard finds herself blushing even harder at Byleth’s words.</p>
<p>            “<em>Dinner’s ready!</em>” Sitri calls from downstairs. </p>
<p>            “Let’s not keep your mom waiting,” Jeralt says. </p>
<p>            All three head downstairs, where Sitri has laid out a wonderful looking and smelling meal. She smiles as they enter the kitchen, “Edelgard, I hope you like trout, but if you don’t, I can always cook you something else later.”</p>
<p>            “It will be fine,” Edelgard insists.</p>
<p>            “Did you go out and catch this?” Byleth asks Jeralt. </p>
<p>            “Nah, the nearby lake is frozen over. Too obnoxious to try and get the boat out on it. Bought it at the store,” Jeralt explains. </p>
<p>            “So, the pond should be frozen solid, right?” Byleth continues with a small smirk on her face. </p>
<p>            Jeralt stares at her before he returns the smile, “You want to go skating.”</p>
<p>            “Would be fun,” Byleth says as she begins to dig in.</p>
<p>            “We’d have to pull out our old skates from the attic,” Sitri says. “Can you skate, Edelgard?”</p>
<p>            “I can,” Edelgard says. “I won’t say I’m great at it but I can manage.”</p>
<p>            “Nonsense, when we went to that ice rink last year you and Ferdinand had that race around the rink and you lapped him,” Byleth argues. </p>
<p>            “Ferdinand hadn’t been skating since he was a kid,” Edelgard points out. “And I got practice in when Dorothea got that second job at that ridiculous disco roller rink during the summer and I went to visit her.”</p>
<p>            “Oh god, I had forgotten about that place,” Byleth laughs. </p>
<p>            “Ferdinand and Dorothea are both . . . Black Eagles, right?” Sitri checks. </p>
<p>            Edelgard nods, “Our friends.”</p>
<p>            “I heard a lot of your group from Byleth,” Sitri says. “Well, she talks about you more but they get brought up often.” </p>
<p>            “Byleth talks about you a lot,” Jeralt adds.</p>
<p>            Now it's Byleth’s turn to blush, “<em>Dad</em>.”</p>
<p>            “You do!” Jeralt insists. </p>
<p>            “But uh,” Byleth clears her throat. “About the Black Eagles-”</p>
<p>            A knock on the door interrupts her. </p>
<p>            “Were you expecting anyone?” Jeralt turns to Sitri, who shakes her head. </p>
<p>            “Might be the mailman?” Edelgard suggests. </p>
<p>            “He came earlier,” Sitri says. </p>
<p>            “Actually,” Byleth interrupts. She seems nervous as she announces, “I . . . may have invited the Black Eagles to come up here too and I think that’s them?”</p>
<p>            Everyone stares at her, and together Edelgard, Jeralt, and Sitri say, “What?”</p>
<p>            “I thought it would be a nice surprise,” Byleth continues. “Y’know, since Edelgard and I have spent Christmas with them in the past and it would be nice to have everyone in one place.”</p>
<p>            “Yes, but how much is everyone?” Jeralt checks. </p>
<p>            “Eight more,” Byleth admits. </p>
<p>            “Eight?” Edelgard checks. </p>
<p>            “I invited Lysithea too.” </p>
<p>            Jeralt and Sitri share a look, the latter asking, “Do we have enough food?”</p>
<p>            “Do we have enough room?” Jeralt counters. </p>
<p>            The knocking on the front door echoes throughout the home again. </p>
<p>            “We should let them in,” Sitri stands up. “It’s too cold to leave them on the porch for that long.”</p>
<p>            Sitri stands up, with Byleth following her. Jeralt glances across the table and says, “You didn’t know about this either.”</p>
<p>            “I didn’t,” Edelgard admits. </p>
<p>            “Yeah, that sounds like Byleth,” Jeralt grins as he stands up. “Not great at surprises, but she has her heart in the right place. I’m gonna go dig out some sleeping bags, you go say hi to your friends.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard does so, entering the living room just in time to see Hubert slip on the icy patch. Unlike earlier, when she had Byleth to catch her, her best friend falls right into Ferdinand and both end up on the ground. </p>
<p>            “Huh,” Byleth says to Sitri. “We forgot to tell them about the icy patch.”</p>
<p>            “That’s one way to make an entrance Hubie,” Dorothea adds as she pokes her head in.</p>
<p>            “I’m so sorry,” Sitri says as she helps Hubert up. “We should have warned you about the icy patch. The rest of you, please watch your step as you come in!”</p>
<p>            “You alright, Hubert?” Edelgard checks as he’s pushed along into the living as the other Black Eagles come in. </p>
<p>           “Physically, I’ll survive,” Hubert grumbles. “But I believe I lost my dignity in the fall.”</p>
<p>            “Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” Ferdinand insists. “I fell too.”</p>
<p>            “That’s assuming you had any dignity left to lose.”</p>
<p>            “Hubert-!”</p>
<p>            “Boys, it’s Christmas, don’t fight,” Dorothea sighs. She rolls her eyes as she turns to Edelgard, “They’ve been doing this <em>all the way here</em>.”</p>
<p>            “We should not be letting Hubert and Ferdinand drive together anymore,” Petra adds gravely. </p>
<p>            “Yeah, we almost got lost because they were both arguing for going two completely different directions that were both wrong,” Linhardt adds. </p>
<p>            “At least we got to stop at that A&amp;W as they argued,” Caspar says. </p>
<p>            “Yeah, but we got kicked out and had to watch them fight in the parking lot.”</p>
<p>            “Oh, right.”</p>
<p>            “How did you get kicked out of an A&amp;W?” Edelgard asks. </p>
<p>            “Caspar tried to chug a glass of root beer and ended up accidentally elbowing a waiter, causing him to break a tray of glass mugs,” Linhardt reveals. </p>
<p>            “Anyways,” Dorothea sighs. “Edie, I bet you’re surprised to see us.”</p>
<p>            “I am,” Edelgard admits. “But, where’s Lysithea?”</p>
<p>            “Lysithea is coming up tomorrow because she had to work today, but it’ll be another Black Eagles Christmas.”</p>
<p>            “I’m surprised you all went along with Byleth’s plans as well.” </p>
<p>            “Why wouldn’t we? It’s a win-win scenario. We all get to spend Christmas together in some place nice and,” Dorothea leans in to whisper in her ear. “Maybe you won’t be so nervous about meeting Byleth’s parents with all of us here.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard hadn’t thought of it like that. It does seem like a very Byleth thing to do, invite all of their friends along to meet her parents and spend the holidays together just so Edelgard wouldn’t be as nervous. Despite the anxiety that set in from this surprise initially, having all of her friends in one place has made her feel better. </p>
<p>            “Yes, it wouldn’t be Christmas if we weren’t able to spend it together,” Ferdinand adds. “And despite you only being gone for half a day, Hubert was already getting quite dour.”</p>
<p>            “I was not,” Hubert grumbles. </p>
<p>            “You were,” Dorothea, Petra, Caspar, and Linhardt confirm at once. </p>
<p>            “I’m glad you’re here, Hubert,” Edelgard says. “The rest of you too.” </p>
<p>            Edelgard feels a hand on her elbow, and turns as Byleth comes up beside her, smiling like the sun, “Hey guys, thanks for coming.”</p>
<p>            “Of course, it’s beautiful up here,” Dorothea insists. </p>
<p>            “Where’d Bernie go?” Petra checks. </p>
<p>            “I let her hide-out in my room, let her get used to her surroundings,” Byleth confirms. “She said she’ll come down when she’s ready.”</p>
<p>            “Alright,” Sitri joins the group. “Is this everyone?”</p>
<p>            “Yep. Well, Lysithea is coming tomorrow but mom, this is Linhardt, Caspar, Petra, Dorothea, Ferdinand and Hubert. Bernadetta’s upstairs right now,” Byleth does introductions. “Everyone, this is my mom.”</p>
<p>            “Please, call me Sitri,” Sitri says. “This all was a bit . . . unexpected, but please, make yourselves at home. We’ll probably try to sort out dinner and sleeping arrangements after I can find my husband . . .”</p>
<p>            “He said he was going to look for sleeping bags,” Edelgard reveals. </p>
<p>            “Ah, good,” Sitri sighs. “If anyone’s starving, I cooked up some trout, but there won’t be enough for everyone.”</p>
<p>            “Oo! Food!” Caspar runs into the kitchen.</p>
<p>            “Can someone go stop him from eating everything?” Edelgard sighs. </p>
<p>            “I’ve got it!” Ferdinand declares. “Caspar, save some for the rest of us!”</p>
<p>            The Black Eagles disperse about the living room, looking at decorations and talking with one another, but Byleth isn’t done talking to her mom. Edelgard stands near-by, knowing that she’s being nosey, but she can’t help it, especially after such a disruption to their holiday plans.</p>
<p>            “Sorry for not telling you,” Byleth apologizes, awkwardly rubbing the back of her head. “I wanted it to be a surprise.”</p>
<p>            “I understand, Byleth,” Sitri insists, placing a hand on her shoulder. “While a warning would have been nice, I’m also glad that I get a chance to meet all of your friends, no matter the circumstance. From what it sounds like, you’ve grown quite close to them over the years you’ve been at Garreg Mach.”</p>
<p>            Byleth nods, “They’re my family now, too.”</p>
<p>            That’s the first time Byleth has called the Black Eagles her family, and as soon as she says it Edelgard realizes that the truth is the same for her. The Black Eagles <em>are</em> her family, and have been for quite some time.</p>
<p>            Sitri smiles, “And you wanted the whole family together for Christmas.”</p>
<p>            Byleth nods again. </p>
<p>            “I’m glad we can all spend it together then,” Sitri says. “Come here.”</p>
<p>            She pulls Byleth into a hug as Jeralt enters the room carrying a couple of sleeping bags under his arm, “Who’s the blue kid eating the rest of the trout?”</p>
<p>            “That’s just Caspar,” Byleth says before letting go of Sitri. </p>
<p>            “Okay,” Jeralt sighs, but it’s clear that he’s still confused about what’s going on. “Well, I’ve found four sleeping bags and two blow-up mattresses out in the garage, but one’s got a hole in it. There’s a day-bed in the attic so two or three can fit on there, plus the couch down here.”</p>
<p>            “I think that’ll be more than enough for everyone,” Sitri says. </p>
<p>            “Can we use the office?” Byleth asks. “Bernie’s not good with new people, so it might take her a bit to warm up to you two.”</p>
<p>            “Of course. It’s not like me or your father really use it anyways,” Sitri says. “So that sorts out sleeping arrangements, but what about food?”</p>
<p>            The three share a look as Byleth suggests, “Pizza?”</p>
<p>            “Pizza sounds good,” Jeralt agrees. Then, together they say, “With anchovies.” </p>
<p>            “I swear, your stomachs are connected,” Sitri sighs. “But pizza works.”</p>
<p>            “If you order, I’ll go get it,” Jeralt says. </p>
<p>            “Got it,” Sitri turns to Byleth, “Can you help your friends sort out where they’ll be sleeping?”</p>
<p>            Byleth nods, and the Eisners split up. As Jeralt and Sitri head into the kitchen, Caspar comes out and announces, “Man, that fish was good!”</p>
<p>            A defeated Ferdinand follows him, “Please tell me there are other dinner plans.”</p>
<p>            “Pizza,” Byleth confirms. </p>
<p>            “Pizza?” Ferdinand repeats. “Are there pizza places up here?”</p>
<p>            “We may be in the middle of nowhere, but there’s still pizza places,” Byleth confirms. “Also, Dad found some sleeping bags and we think we know where you all will be sleeping.”</p>
<p>            It’s pretty easy to sort out rooms. Bernadetta, Dorothea, and Petra are all going to be sleeping in the office after they push the furniture up against the walls and blow-up the mattress, Caspar and Linhardt will be in the attic since the former is very enthusiastic about staying up there, and Hubert and Ferdinand are stuck in the living room. All of this is settled before pizza arrives. </p>
<p>            When Jeralt returns with the pizza, the only place that can fit everyone is the living room, so the Black Eagles and Byleth’s parents have squeezed themselves onto the couches and chairs or scattered themselves on the floor. Even Bernie came down at the promise of food, and stuck herself between Hubert and Ferdinand. Edelgard, while squeezed into a chair with Byleth, is glad that all of her friends are getting along well with Byleth’s parents.</p>
<p>            “Correct me if I’m wrong,” Petra begins. “Is it not traditional to bring in a tree and decorate it?”</p>
<p>            “It is,” Sitri confirms. </p>
<p>            “I was gonna try to pick one out tonight,” Jeralt grunts. “But I guess that’ll be moved tomorrow.”</p>
<p>            “Do you guys usually get a real tree?” Dorothea asks. Jeralt simply nods.</p>
<p>            “Why do we never get a ‘real tree’?” Petra asks. </p>
<p>            “It’s a lot of work,” Linhardt says. “And we’re all tired college kids.”</p>
<p>            “Yeah, and real trees aren’t gay like our trees!” Caspar adds. </p>
<p>            Sitri and Jeralt look to Byleth for an explanation, who says with a mouth full of pizza, “It’s a rainbow tree.”</p>
<p>            “I wanted to get the black tree, but was out-voted,” Hubert adds. </p>
<p>            “You were the only one who wanted the goth tree,” Ferdinand says. </p>
<p>            “It certainly would have been an interesting tree,” Bernadetta mutters, patting Hubert’s shoulder in comfort. </p>
<p>            “Can we come with you to get the tree?” Caspar asks Jeralt. “I don’t think I’ve ever gone tree-picking before.”</p>
<p>            “Oo, that’d be fun!” Dorothea agrees. </p>
<p>            “Helping you out would be the least we could do to repay you for letting us stay in your home,” Ferdinand adds. </p>
<p>            Jeralt blinks, “Well . . . the more the merrier, I guess.”</p>
<p>            As the Black Eagles continue to talk about Christmas trees, Byleth bums Edelgard’s shoulder and leans in close to whisper, “You’re happy.”</p>
<p>            She hadn’t even noticed she wasn’t just smiling, she’s grinning, “I am. Thank-you for inviting our friends for Christmas. I didn’t know I needed everyone together.”</p>
<p>            “Of course,” Byleth says. “They’re our family. It wouldn’t be Christmas without them.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard kisses Byleth then, smiling into the kiss. It certainly wouldn’t be Christmas without her family.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. its lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The next day, after picking out a Christmas Tree, some uninvited guests arrive . . .</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I SURVIVED FINALS!</p>
<p>Holy shit, it was more stressful than I realized. Anyways, here's the next chapter! There's some stuff I want to mention now that I have gotten my wits back. First off, this fic is heavily inspired by the greatest Christmas special of all time: A Muppet Family Christmas. You can watch it on YouTube and it's very good. Secondly, I had the time to figure out how to add pictures to ao3. It's . . . way easier than I expected. Go back and look at the first chap if you want to see it. </p>
<p>And I think that's it? I hope you all enjoy this chapter!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            “Alright troops,” Jeralt announces as he steps into the kitchen. “Let’s go get a Christmas tree.”</p>
<p>            “Can . . . can we finish breakfast first?” Dorothea asks. </p>
<p>            The next morning, all the Black Eagles have assembled in the kitchen, since Sitri offered to make them breakfast. </p>
<p>            “No Christmas tree searching until everyone has eaten,” Sitri says as she waves a spatula at Jeralt. “And that includes you, dear.”</p>
<p>            “Alright,” Jeralt says. “But we’re supposed to be getting more snow later, so if we want to get a tree, we need to do it early.”</p>
<p>            So, the Black Eagles quickly finish breakfast and get dressed to head out to the snow, excited to participate in this holiday tradition. After all, this is the first time a lot of them have had a real tree for Christmas. </p>
<p>            Of course, the first thing Caspar does once he gets outside is roll up a snowball and throw it at Ferdinand. </p>
<p>            “Caspar!” Ferdinand gasps. “That was completely uncalled for-!” he’s cut off as another snowball splatters against his face. “Alright, that’s it-”</p>
<p>            “Boys,” Jeralt sighs. “Snowball fight later, getting a tree now.”</p>
<p>            “Sorry sir,” Ferdinand apologizes and straightens out his jacket. “We shall have to continue later, Caspar, but let’s go and get a tree!”</p>
<p>            Ferdinand marches forward, and Jeralt turns to Byleth, “Is he always so loud?”</p>
<p>            She just nods. </p>
<p>            The Black Eagles enter the forest, leaving trails of footprints in the fresh snow.</p>
<p>            “So, you all know what we’re looking for, right?” Jeralt asks everyone. </p>
<p>            They’re all silent until Caspar whispers to Hubert, “Is this a trick question? Aren’t we just looking for a tree?”</p>
<p>            “Yes, but specifically,” Jeralt sighs. “We’ll probably want a balsam or fraser fir.”</p>
<p>            Once again, he’s met with blank stares. </p>
<p>            “They’re trees, guys,” Byleth unhelpfully adds. </p>
<p>            “Just, you want to find a healthy tree,” Jeralt explains. “Good color and shape, and shake it to see how many needles fall out. If it loses a lot of needles, then it’s not healthy. Nothing above seven feet either or it won’t fit in the house, so . . . look for a tree slightly taller than Hubert.”</p>
<p>            “Guess you’re acting as a ruler, Hubie,” Dorothea says. </p>
<p>            “Glad I can be of use,” he mumbles. </p>
<p>            “Alright, you all got that?” Jeralt asks. When everyone makes a vague noise of understanding, he nods and says, “I’m going to get the sled and the saw while the rest of you look for a tree. Don’t let anyone get lost and stay around here. This is where the best firs are anyways, and you probably won’t get good cell phone service.”</p>
<p>            He probably shouldn’t leave the Black Eagles on their own, but he doesn’t know that yet so it sounds like a good idea. </p>
<p>            As Jeralt leaves, Edelgard turns to Byleth, “So, I guess you’re going to have to take lead on this one. You have the most experience out of all of us.”</p>
<p>            “Actually,” Byleth admits. “Usually, Dad picks out the tree and I just tag along.”</p>
<p>            “Well, your father must trust us!” Ferdinand insists. </p>
<p>            “Eh,” Byleth says. “But it’s cold. Let’s go find a tree.”</p>
<p>            They decide to split up into three groups of three to cover more area and not get lost. Edelgard is with Byleth (obviously) and Hubert (their usual third wheel). She walks hand-in-hand with Byleth through the snow-covered glen, while Hubert trudges behind them. After twenty minutes of walking and using Hubert as a measuring stick, Byleth thinks they found the perfect tree.</p>
<p>            “I mean,” Edelgard says as she walks around. “It seems to be the right shape, but it’s about a foot taller than Hubert.”</p>
<p>            Byleth lets go of Edelgard’s hand to reach into the tree and shake it, “I don’t think a lot of pine needles are falling off. And Dad said it was supposed to be about as tall as Hubert.”</p>
<p>            After getting the group consensus, they decide that this tree might be good just as Jeralt arrives. </p>
<p>            “Alright kids, did you find a tree?” Jeralt asks as he approaches, dragging along a sled and carrying a two-handled saw. </p>
<p>            “I believe we did,” Edelgard says. “It’s roughly one Hubert tall and looks good from all sides.”</p>
<p>            Jeralt walks around the tree, carefully studying it from all sides. He leans in to grab the trunk and roughly shakes it. When he stands back, he nods, “Looks like you’ve found a winner. Now let’s cut it down. Who wants to help?”</p>
<p>            “I shall!” Ferdinand bravely volunteers. “What do I need to do?”</p>
<p>            “Hold this,” Jeralt hands Ferdinand the other end of the two-handle saw. “We’ll take turns pulling on the saw.”</p>
<p>            “Sounds easy enough!”</p>
<p>            The two get set-up at the trunk of the tree while everyone else simply watches. Jeralt pulls first, getting the first cut into the trunk. When Ferdinand tries to pull, he loses his grip and falls flat on his ass into the snow. </p>
<p>            “You gotta put more elbow grease into it,” Jeralt advises. </p>
<p>            “Elbow grease?” Ferdinand echoes as Petra helps him up. </p>
<p>            “May I try?” Petra asks. </p>
<p>            “Go ahead.”</p>
<p>            Petra gets down on the ground and pulls on the saw, which easily slides through the wood. </p>
<p>            “Ah,” Ferdinand nods wisely. “That’s elbow grease.”</p>
<p>            Together, Jeralt and Petra make quick work of the tree. It falls over, almost hitting Hubert before landing in the snow. Jeralt instructs, “Let’s get it onto the sled and back to the farmhouse.”</p>
<p>            The trek back takes longer than before, mostly because they all have to deal with keeping the tree on the sled. However, as they approach the farm house, Sitri steps onto the porch and holds open the door for Jeralt and Byleth to carry the tree in, “Oh wow. That looks beautiful, good job everyone!”</p>
<p>            “So, are we going to decorate the tree now?” Edelgard asks. </p>
<p>            “I’m still sorting through ornaments in the attic,” Sitri admits. “We can get started on it after lunch.”</p>
<p>            “Sweet, that means we have time for a snowball fight!” Caspar shouts, immediately throwing two snowballs at Hubert. </p>
<p>            Hubert growls and forms a snowball of his own . . . only when he throws it, he accidentally hits Edelgard. Everyone stares at him in shock as he stammers, “Edelgard, I am sorry it was a mistake-”</p>
<p>            “It’s alright Hubert,” Edelgard insists as she scoops up some snow from the bannister of the porch. </p>
<p>            As she rolls it into a ball, Hubert asks, “Is that for me?”</p>
<p>            “No.”</p>
<p>            “It’s alright,” Hubert insists. “I deserve it.”</p>
<p>            “That’s a bit depressing, Hubie,” Dorothea sighs. </p>
<p>            “Wait, is it not being with tradition to throw the snowball back?” Petra asks. </p>
<p>            “I’ve got a better idea,” Edelgard smirks. She pelts Caspar with a snowball, hitting him square in the face. </p>
<p>            Instead of being angry, he cheers, “AW YEAH! SNOWBALL FIGHT!”</p>
<p>            “Wait, what?” Bernadetta squeaks and Caspar begins to randomly throw snowballs. She has to hide behind Hubert to avoid getting hit, and the other Eagles dive for cover as well, whether behind bushes or the side of the house. Linhardt simply lays down on the porch swings, deciding to not pay attention to what’s going on.</p>
<p>            “Here,” Hubert hands Bernadetta the snowball he was making, bravely acting as her shield.</p>
<p>            “What am I supposed to do with it!?” Bernadetta panics. </p>
<p>            “You’ve got the best aim of us all,” Edelgard reassures her as she starts a stockpile of snowballs. “Make him pay.”</p>
<p>            “All on Caspar!” Petra shouts.  </p>
<p>            Bernadetta looks cautiously at the snowball, but eventually she peeks out from behind Hubert to throw it. As Caspar yells a war cry, the snowball manages to land in his mouth, muting him. </p>
<p>            “Holy shit,” Byleth gasps, and the chaos stops for a moment as they all realize what happened. </p>
<p>            “Oh, uh, sorry Caspar!” Bernadetta cries. </p>
<p>            Caspar spits the snow out of his mouth as he shouts, “No, that was sick! Can you do it again?”</p>
<p>            The snowball fight quickly turned into getting Bernadetta to do trick shots with snowballs, most of them revolving around hitting Caspar with them. However, Edelgard decides to step back and do something she hasn’t done since she was a kid: make a snowman.</p>
<p>            Dorothea and Petra chip in, especially since Petra has never built a snowman before, idly chatting as they build up the body and begin to decorate it. </p>
<p>            “Man, I’m glad I came up here,” Dorothea sighs as she throws her scarf around the snowman. “It’s so nice to be away from the city . . . a breath for fresh air I didn’t know I needed.”</p>
<p>            “Are you sure it isn’t because you wanted to miss the Blue Lions’ Christmas party so you could avoid seeing Ingrid?” Edelgard teases. </p>
<p>            “No!” Dorothea says a little too quickly. “It’s because I wanted to spend Christmas with my friends. Obviously.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard rolls her eyes. Dorothea developed a crush on Ingrid earlier this year and hasn’t bothered acting on it yet, mainly because Ingrid seems oblivious to all her flirting. Edelgard wishes that she would take her own advice for once and finally ask them out.</p>
<p>            “Do we actually need coal for the eyes and mouth or can we be using a substitute?” Petra asks, staring intensely at the blank face. </p>
<p>            “I would use pine cones and sticks as a kid,” Edelgard admits. “But we should see if Sitri has a carrot we can borrow for a nose.”</p>
<p>            As if on cue, Sitri steps out onto the porch to announce, “Hey everybody! Lunch is ready, and I made hot chocolate!” </p>
<p>            The other Eagles start to head inside, but before Edelgard can start heading in, she spots a beat-up white car rolling up the path to the house. She immediately recognizes it as Claude’s shitty car, the Wyvern. Recognition soon turns to confusion as she wonders why his car is all the way up north, unless Lysithea had to borrow it (which seemed improbable, as he refuses to let anyone else drive it). </p>
<p>            “Is that Claude’s car?” Dorothea asks. </p>
<p>            “I . . . believe it is,” Petra says. </p>
<p>            “I thought you all only invited Lysithea,” Edelgard says. </p>
<p>            “We did,” Dorothea frowns. </p>
<p>            The Wyvern stops, and the first person out is Lysithea, who immediately prefaces with, “I’m sorry in advance.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard can’t question that, as Claude opens the door and shouts, “MERRY CHRISTMAS!”</p>
<p>            Edelgard glances over at Byleth, who stopped at the porch and looks just as confused. The latter asks, “Uh . . . hi Claude? Why are you here?”</p>
<p>            “Is that anyway to greet a friend, teach?” Claude insists. “But if you want to know-”</p>
<p>            “He wouldn’t leave me alone until I told him where I was spending the holidays and invited himself despite my multiple threats,” Lysithea sighs. “And then he invited Hilda and Leonie too, but they’re in a separate car.”</p>
<p>            “They should be only a couple minutes behind us,” Claude adds. “But I thought spending the holidays up north would be fun, for the authentic experience! Y’know, having a white Christmas and all that jazz!”</p>
<p>            “Claude . . .” Edelgard sighs. “We’re already packed into the farm house. I don’t know if there’s any more room . . .”</p>
<p>            “I’m surprised that’s what you’re focusing on and not that Hilda’s coming along,” Claude points out. It’s well known that Edelgard and Hilda dated for four months in sophomore year and had the messiest break-up in the recorded history of Garreg Mach. </p>
<p>            “Oh, I’m getting to that,” she growls. What was Claude thinking, inviting her ex-girlfriend while she’s meeting her <em>current</em> girlfriend’s family (though, Byleth knows that she and Hilda now only share a mutual animosity towards each other and nothing else). “Really Claude, why are you here?”</p>
<p>            Claude keeps up his easy smirk, and shrugs, “Well, if you want the sob story, I’d be alone otherwise. The other Golden Deer were going to visit their family, so when I heard that you all had invited the Black Eagles, I thought I’d join in the fun. A couple other of our friends decided to tag along too.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard frowns. Though she knows that Claude’s family is all out of the country, it doesn’t mean that he can just crash their holiday plans. But . . . Byleth is looking at her with puppy eyes and it’s <em>very</em> hard to resist the puppy eyes, “. . . Byleth, it’s your house. You make the decision.”</p>
<p>            “You can stay,” Byleth says immediately.</p>
<p>            “Thanks, teach,” Claude grins. </p>
<p>            “Claude, I was your TA for one semester, you don’t have to call me that.”</p>
<p>            “But I will.”</p>
<p>            “Oh, also you might have to sleep on the floor.”</p>
<p>            “I’m fine with that,” Claude shrugs. “I’ve fallen asleep in stranger places.”</p>
<p>            “Will Hilda be fine with that?” Edelgard checks. </p>
<p>            “Probably not,” Lysithea and Claude say at the same time Leonie’s pick-up rumbles down the drive. </p>
<p>            “Kids, are you coming in-” Sitri pauses as she notices that there are more people outside than last time. </p>
<p>            “Mom?” Byleth begins. “We’ve had some uh, unexpected guests?”</p>
<p>            “Did . . . did you invite these ones?” Sitri checks. </p>
<p>            “No, only Lysithea was invited.”</p>
<p>            “. . . I’ll go and see if your dad can find any more sleeping bags.”</p>
<p>            As Sitri disappears back inside, Hilda and Leonie step out of the pick-up. </p>
<p>            “Uhg,” Hilda groans as she wraps her arms around herself. “It’s so fucking cold.”</p>
<p>            “We’re up north,” Leonie points out. “Of course, it’s cold.”</p>
<p>            “Aw, I’m glad you two managed to survive the drive!” Claude says. “Come on over and join in on the fun!”</p>
<p>            “Hey guys,” Leonie says. “Thanks for having us.”</p>
<p>            “Well, it’s not like we knew you were coming,” Dorothea points out. “Hilda, you look very happy.”</p>
<p>            “The heater in Leonie’s car is broken,” Hilda hisses. </p>
<p>            “It’s not that cold,” Leonie insists. </p>
<p>            “It is!” </p>
<p>            “What was this about needing more sleeping bags?” Jeralt says as he steps onto the porch. He looks over at the group, confused for a second as he counts the heads. It breaks into a smile as he says, “Oh, hey Leonie.”</p>
<p>            “Hi Coach Eisner,” Leonie replies. </p>
<p>            “You know Byleth’s dad?” Edelgard checks. </p>
<p>            “He was my hockey coach in high school,” Leonie reveals. </p>
<p>            “Yep, Leonie was the star of one of the best teams I had ever coached,” Jeralt says. “I guess you and . . . your friends are the reason why we need more sleeping bags.”</p>
<p>            “Yep,” Claude nods and holds out his hand. “I’m Claude. It’s nice to meet the teach’s dad.”</p>
<p>            Jeralt glances to Byleth in confusion and she answers, “TA.”</p>
<p>            “Ah, right. Well, you kids should go inside and grab some lunch.”</p>
<p>            “Oh, thank god,” Hilda mutters as she brushes past Edelgard. “I’m about to turn into an icicle.”</p>
<p>            “Or, Hilda-cicle,” Claude suggests, trailing after her. </p>
<p>            “Don’t start with me Claude.”</p>
<p>            “Actually, Coach, do you wanna catch up?” Leonie asks. </p>
<p>            “You don’t have to call me coach, Leonie,” Jeralt points out. “Jeralt is fine, but yeah, I don’t mind.”</p>
<p>            Leonie sticks outside with Jeralt, the others beginning to head inside. Now Edelgard has the chance to properly welcome Lysithea, stopping to hug her, “I’m glad to see you. Thanks for coming up here.”</p>
<p>            “Even though I brought along three parasites?” Lysithea grimaces. </p>
<p>            “Claude’s wily, so I don’t blame you,” Edelgard insists. “But I’m glad we’ll be able to spend the holidays-”</p>
<p>            “SHIT!” </p>
<p>            Everyone turns towards the door of the farmhouse, where Hilda has fallen. Claude has doubled-over laughing, while Byleth rubs her chin, “Ah right. We forgot to tell you about the icy patch. Well, watch out.”</p>
<p>             “Thanks,” Hilda says dryly, sitting up and rubbing her neck. “Well, I think I pulled a muscle. Do you think one of you can get all my luggage from the car?”</p>
<p>            “Same old Hilda,” Edelgard sighs, but quickly tries to push that out of her head. “We really should get inside. Byleth’s mother, Sitri, made hot chocolate.”</p>
<p>            Lysithea’s eyes light up at the mention of the sweet drink and in a whisper, she asks, “Do you think there’s marshmallows?”</p>
<p>            “I’m sure of it,” Edelgard laughs.</p>
<p>            Everyone finally heads inside, letting the warmth of the farmhouse chase away the remaining cold. Though most people head into the kitchen, Hilda ends up sitting down on the couch, and Edelgard keeps her eyes trained on her. As soon as the living room is empty enough, she asks, “Why are you even here? The only reason why I can think you’d want to spend the holidays in any proximity to me is because you didn’t know I was going to be here.”</p>
<p>            “No, I knew you were going to be here,” Hilda says. “I’m here because it was between this or dealing with my brother. He just got engaged and is in the honeymoon phase with his fiancée. I swear, he and Baltie are so disgusting together and I don’t think I could survive Christmas while he’s being sickeningly sweet and domestic and all that shit.”</p>
<p>            Though her own familial circumstances are absolutely nothing like Hilda’s, she can understand wanting to get away from her blood family. So, she doesn’t pry or complain any further, “Alright fine just, please leave me alone.”</p>
<p>            “Oh, don’t worry, that feeling is mutual,” Hilda says and then smirks. “Besides, I’ve got other plans.”</p>
<p>            “I assume those plans mostly involve ‘doing nothing’?”</p>
<p>            “Au contraire, but it’s a surprise.”</p>
<p>            “I look forward to seeing you actually put effort into something.”</p>
<p>            Byleth walks in from the kitchen, carrying two plates of food. When she sees that it’s just Edelgard and Hilda, she raises an eyebrow and asks, “Everything going alright in here?”</p>
<p>            “Just catching up,” Hilda says with a fake smile. “Oo, did you bring me food?”</p>
<p>            “No,” Byleth moves one plate out of her reach. “It’s for El.”</p>
<p>            “Thank-you, Byleth,” Edelgard takes the plate out of her hand. “Are Jeralt and Leonie still catching up?”</p>
<p>            “I believe so,” she nods. </p>
<p>            “I didn’t realize that the two knew each other,” Hilda says. </p>
<p>            “Well, Dad was a coach at the high school for a while,” Byleth says as she shoves food into her mouth. “I forgot that we were from the same county. Oh, also my mom says we’ll start decorating the tree after lunch.”</p>
<p>            Shortly after, people began to finishing eating and started helping Sitri bring down the boxes of Christmas ornaments. Then, it was time to decorate the tree.</p>
<p>            Decorating a tree with fourteen people is difficult only because there’s fourteen people in such a small space. So, seeing that there were more than enough hands for the job, Edelgard sits back with a cup of hot chocolate and watches the chaos. But she doesn’t get to sit still for long.</p>
<p>            “Psst, Edelgard,” Sitri leans out of the kitchen and waves her over, going unnoticed amidst the decorating chaos. </p>
<p>            She stands up and walks into the kitchen, “Yes?”</p>
<p>            In front of her on the kitchen table, Sitri has laid out a few photo albums, “When I was looking for ornaments, I ended up finding some albums filled with Byleth’s baby photos. I don’t want to embarrass her too much in front of her friends . . . but since you’re her girlfriend I thought you’d like to see them.”</p>
<p>            Byleth’s . . . baby photos? It’s hard to imagine Byleth as a baby, since she’s only known her as an adult. But curiously, she stands next to Sitri and looks down at the photos. As a baby, Byleth wears the very same neutral expression she does as an adult, just with chubbier cheeks. </p>
<p>            “This was her first Christmas,” Sitri says fondly. “She enjoyed trying to eat the wrapping paper more than the actual toys we got her.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard laughs, “Aw. I guess she’s always had the same appetite.”</p>
<p>            “She does!” Sitri laughs. </p>
<p>            “Hey El,” Byleth walks into the kitchen. “Oh, hey Mom. What are you two doing?”</p>
<p>            “Ah, nothing,” Sitri insists. </p>
<p>            When Byleth notices what they’re looking at, she blushes, “Are those my baby photos?”</p>
<p>            “Maybe,” Sitri says. “I just had to show them to Edelgard.”</p>
<p>            “You were a cute baby,” Edelgard insists. </p>
<p>            "I guess but, uhm,” Byleth mutters. “I was just looking for you El, I was wondering where you went.” </p>
<p>            “I didn’t go far,” Edelgard says, taking Byleth’s hand and squeezing it. </p>
<p>            “I won’t keep you any longer,” Sitri says. “Why don’t you two rejoin your friends?”</p>
<p>            “Well . . . I do want to see more baby photos,” Edelgard says. </p>
<p>            “El,” Byleth whines. </p>
<p>            “What? They’re cute!”</p>
<p>            “I’ll keep the albums out, we can look through them later,” Sitri insists. “But you can only decorate the tree once a year, so you go have fun.”</p>
<p>            “Alright” Edelgard agrees, letting Byleth drag her into the living room to rejoin their friends. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank-you all for reading! If you liked it, please leave a comment that's what inspires me to keep on writing and delivering content. </p>
<p>Next, if you'd like to hear more from me and my work, please go follow me on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/Sniperdoodle12">@Sniperdoodle12</a>. </p>
<p>I should have the next chapter up on Tuesday, so three days from now! Next time, more people slip on the icy patch and Caspar invents mistle-foe.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. chestnuts roasting on an open fire, jack frost nipping at your nose</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The next day, a games are played and what do you know, more unexpected visitors!? It's almost like it's a running gag or something.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello everyone, once again thank you all for reading! One note that I'd like to make is that I do reference a game called Dice Throne in this chapter, and if you haven't heard of it you should go play it. It's a combination of Yahtzee and Magic the Gathering where you play as a character in a free-for-all battle. It's super fun . . . once you understand it. And that's all you need to know on that, so enjoy the chapter!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Edelgard loves waking up next to Byleth. Her girlfriend always manages to wake up before her, but on days when neither of them have anywhere to be, Byleth waits for her to wake. </p>
<p>            “Mornin’ El,” Byleth hums and kisses her forehead. </p>
<p>            “Hey,” Edelgard yawns and glances over at the alarm clock. “What time isit?” </p>
<p>            “It’s almost ten,” Byleth reveals. “You and I almost never get to sleep in this late.”</p>
<p>            “I doubt you were doing any sleeping,” Edelgard points out. </p>
<p>            “Okay, maybe, but it’s nice being here with you,” Byleth insists. “And as much as I would like to stay here, Mom already made breakfast.”</p>
<p>            “Do you think there’s anything left over?”</p>
<p>            “She went on a grocery run yesterday and bought enough to fill up the kitchen fridge and the one in the basement,” Byleth says. “But since everyone’s eating, I think the bathroom will be free, so you may want to grab that first.”</p>
<p>            “Don’t you want to use it?” Edelgard checks. </p>
<p>            “I’m fine with using the one in the basement.”</p>
<p>            “Isn’t that one creepy?”</p>
<p>            “Just a little, but I’m not gonna make my friends use the creepy bathroom.”</p>
<p>            “Alright,” Edelgard sits up and stretches, leaning back down to give Byleth a peck on the lips. “Sounds like a plan.”</p>
<p>            The two get dressed and split up to snag time in the bathroom (which is very hard to do with fourteen other people in the house). Once Edelgard’s done, she heads downstairs but pauses on the steps, catching Claude and Hilda whispering in the foyer. </p>
<p>            “You really think it’s gonna work?” Claude asks with a cheeky grin. </p>
<p>            “Of course, it is,” Hilda insists. “I’m not the best match-maker at Garreg Mach University for nothing.”</p>
<p>            “What about that time you tried to set Felix up with-”</p>
<p>            “We don’t talk about that.”</p>
<p>            “What are you two scheming?” Edelgard interrupts. She’s been at the receiving end of Claude and Hilda’s schemes before and it went terribly. She does not want the two to mess up her holiday. </p>
<p>            “Us? Scheming?” Claude fake gasps. “Why Edelgard, do you think so little of me to accuse <em>me</em> of scheming?”</p>
<p>            “You’re always scheming,” Edelgard counters. “And the fact that Hilda is helping you does not give me confidence in whatever you’re trying to pull off.”</p>
<p>            “It’s nothing bad,” Hilda insists. “<em>And</em> it doesn’t involve you. So, trust me on this and get off our backs, alright Edelgard?”</p>
<p>            Edelgard scowls, “I swear, if you two do anything stupid-”</p>
<p>            “Don’t worry,” Claude grins. “It’ll all be fine. Now, why don’t we all go to the kitchen so you can get breakfast and we can get seconds?” </p>
<p>            Though Edelgard doesn’t like that she doesn’t know what those two are doing, she decides to leave it alone for now because she is hungry. She walks past them into the kitchen, from one questionable decision and into another. </p>
<p>            “We should play hockey,” Leonie announces. “We’ve got enough people who can skate, and it would be fun!” </p>
<p>            Byleth nods in agreement as she takes a sip from her cup of tea. </p>
<p>            Edelgard comes and stands next to Byleth, noticing that her hair is still wet from her shower, “What are you doing?”</p>
<p>            “First,” Byleth hands her another cup. “Bergamot.”</p>
<p>            “Oh, thank-you,” Edelgard leans in and kisses Byleth’s cheek. “But really, what are you two planning?”</p>
<p>            “Playing hockey,” Leonie explains. “I’ve never been able to convince ‘the Ashen Demon’ to play with me, but now she doesn’t have an excuse. Plus, Coach Jeralt can play, as well as Caspar and I’m sure some of the others would like to play too. Right Claude?”</p>
<p>            “Don’t drag me into this,” Claude says as he passes by. “I grew up in Almyra. We play soccer, not hockey. Where are you even going to play?”</p>
<p>            “There’s a pond near here-”</p>
<p>            “A pond? Aren’t you afraid you’re going to fall in?” </p>
<p>            “Nah, it’s frozen over.”</p>
<p>            “No, I don’t trust like that.”  </p>
<p>            “Speaking of Caspar,” Edelgard interrupts, after she had been glancing around the kitchen and realizing he was not here. “Where is he-?”</p>
<p>            “Hey guys!” Caspar runs into the kitchen, carrying a bough of holly. “I’ve just had a great idea!” </p>
<p>            “Did you?” Linhardt asks skeptically. “Your ideas tend to range from ‘you got hurt’ to ‘everyone got hurt and also things are on fire’.”</p>
<p>            Caspar ignores him and holds out the branch of holly, “Mistle-foe! Instead of kissing under mistletoe, you fight under it!”</p>
<p>            He’s met with utter silence until Sitri points out, “Caspar, honey, that’s holly. Not mistletoe.”</p>
<p>            He glances at the leaves and shrugs, “Same difference, right?”</p>
<p>            “No,” Sitri continues. “And as . . . interesting of an idea that is, Christmas time is about peace, not fighting. I really don’t want to see anyone get hurt during the holidays.”</p>
<p>            “So, we can do it after the holidays, right?” </p>
<p>            “Caspar no,” Edelgard steps in.</p>
<p>            “Caspar yes!”</p>
<p>            Sitri looks completely unready to handle this, but she sighs and says, “You can do mistle-foe after the holidays . . . With adult supervision.”</p>
<p>            “Aw sweet!”</p>
<p>            Caspar sits down next to Linhardt and begins animatedly talking to him, and everyone goes back about their normal business. </p>
<p>            “I wish he would’ve come up with that back at Garreg Mach,” Leonie sighs. “Would’ve loved a reason to beat up Lorenz. Anyways, I guess we should round up some people for hockey, right?”</p>
<p>            “Ask Caspar first,” Byleth suggests. “Get his mind off mistle-foe.”</p>
<p>            “Got it.”</p>
<p>            As Leonie walks away, Edelgard leans in and asks, “Byleth, is this a wise idea? It’s been years since you’ve played hockey, right?”</p>
<p>            “It’s just a game, El,” Byleth insists. “What’s the worst that could happen?”</p>
<p>            “First thing’s first, Leonie is very competitive with you,” Edelgard begins. “And remember that hockey game you took me too?”</p>
<p>            Byleth slightly frowns, “Not all hockey games are like that, El.”</p>
<p>            During the first couple months they had been dating, Byleth decided to take Edelgard to a hockey game, since she used to play during high school. The two teams were cross-town rivals and there were more fights between players than Edelgard expected. Top that all off with one player having a nasty fall and slitting his leg with his skate. </p>
<p>            “I’ll be fine,” Byleth puts her hands on Edelgard’s shoulders. “I’m still a good skater and keep in shape, plus Dad’ll be there to make sure that things don’t get out of hand. And you’ll be there to watch me, right?”</p>
<p>            Her reassurances bring a small smile to Edelgard’s face, but still she warns, “Just . . . don’t get hurt, please.”</p>
<p>            “I won’t,” Byleth says. “I promise.” </p>
<hr/>
<p>            One hockey game later, and Byleth is sitting by the fireplace in the farmhouse, shivering despite the warmth of the fire and the layers of blankets covering her.</p>
<p>            “Are you mad at me El,” Byleth asks. “For getting hurt?”</p>
<p>            “No, I’m not,” Edelgard says, handing her a warm up of tea before sliding next to her to try to warm her up. “That was hardly your fault.”</p>
<p>            A strange set of circumstances led to Byleth getting hurt and falling into the pond. </p>
<p>            The hockey game was going normally, with Jeralt, Leonie and Ferdinand against Byleth, Petra and Caspar. Edelgard, Claude, and Linhardt were the only ones who came along to watch, though Linhardt was napping instead of watching. </p>
<p>            However, half-way through the game they had uninvited guests. </p>
<p>            A buck, with beautiful antlers, peaks out of the forest, staring at the frozen pond and people playing. A few feet behind it is a doe, eating something off a bush. Those playing hockey didn’t notice, but the bystanders did.</p>
<p>            “Should, should deer be getting that close?” Edelgard asked Claude, but he didn’t know. They wake up Linhardt, who was annoyed at being interrupted but still explained. </p>
<p>            “Yes, usually deer are skittish around humans,” Linhardt explains. “But it’s mating season. The buck might be trying to protect its mate so we should just leave them alone and not get too close.” </p>
<p>            Of course, that doesn’t happen. </p>
<p>            “HEY!” Caspar shouted, pointing right at the buck. “IS THAT A DEER?!”</p>
<p>            Caspar’s shout was enough to spook the deer. The buck was ballsy enough to charge at him, and Petra attempted to pull him out of the way. Thankfully, the deer doesn’t hurt anyone. Instead, the added weight of the deer caused the ice to crack. As Byleth dodged out of the way of the buck, the ice broke beneath her as she landed. Jeralt was the one to pull her out of the freezing pond, and everyone abandoned the hockey game to get back to the farmhouse to warm her up. </p>
<p>            So no, Edelgard is not mad at Byleth over something no one could control or predict. She’s madder that Claude found two things to gloat about-the pond’s ice breaking and his “fear the deer” mantra-and would not shut up. </p>
<p>            Speaking of the devil, Claude sits in the chair across from them and smirks, “So, I guess that’s why they say ‘fear the deer’, huh?”</p>
<p>            “Only you say that,” Edelgard points out. “Can you make yourself useful and go grab some more firewood?”</p>
<p>            “Why can’t you?”</p>
<p>            “I’m warming up my girlfriend.”</p>
<p>            “Alright, that’s fair,” Claude sighs and leaves, just missing Jeralt as he comes in through the front door with an armful of firewood. </p>
<p>            Jeralt throws some of the wood onto the fire and pats Byleth’s head, “Sorry kid, I thought the ice was thicker.”</p>
<p>            “S’not your fault,” Byleth mutters. </p>
<p>            “Are you feeling any warmer?” he checks. </p>
<p>            “Yeah,” Byleth leans into Edelgard. “El’s helping.” </p>
<p>            “Good,” Jeralt nods. “I’m gonna go make sure that we have enough firewood, but let me know if you need any more blankets. I’m sure your mom’s around too.”</p>
<p>            “Alright,” Byleth huddles closer to Edelgard as Jeralt exits. She closes her eyes and is silent, like she might fall asleep, until she says, “You know, that’s not the first time I’ve fallen in that pond.”</p>
<p>            “Through the ice?” Edelgard checks. </p>
<p>            “Mh-hhm,” Byleth nods. “I was really young and it had barely frozen over. I walked on it and it broke, so Dad had to rush me back to the house. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him more worried. After that, I kept on getting into trouble and I think the surprise wore off.”</p>
<p>            “I’m sure he and your mother were still worried about you.”</p>
<p>            “They were. They still <em>are. </em>But I think they just learned over time that I have a high pain tolerance.”</p>
<p>            Which is true, Byleth barely blinks an eye at any pain that would make others hiss and swear. But that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t get injured, and Edelgard is about to remind her of that when there’s a knock on the door. </p>
<p>            “Who’s that?” Byleth asks. </p>
<p>            “I don’t know,” Edelgard says. There’s no one else around, everyone else relaxing in their cramped rooms or enjoying the snow. “Maybe someone got locked out?”</p>
<p>            Just as she’s about to stand, Byleth wraps her arms around her waist and whines, “Don’t leave me you’re so warm.”</p>
<p>            “Let me answer the door,” Edelgard says as there’s another knock. She kisses Byleth’s forehead, “I’ll be right back.” </p>
<p>            Byleth doesn’t seem happy about it, but let’s Edelgard go and wraps the blankets around herself, effectively cocooning herself in. Edelgard walks across the room and opens the door. </p>
<p>            When she does, she’s shocked to see Dimitri, Felix, Sylvain and Ingrid all standing on the porch. She immediately asks, “What are you all doing here?”</p>
<p>            While she doesn’t have a problem with Ingrid, can tolerate Felix and Sylvain, Dimitri is where she draws the line. Despite being her half-brother, she tends to avoid him due to the difficult relationship she has with her mother and step-father.</p>
<p>            The small smile on Dimitri’s face falters, “We . . . we were invited?”</p>
<p>            “Ah, looks who it is!” Hilda runs faster than Edelgard’s ever seen her run before, sweeping into the foyer and leaning on the doorway. “It’s people who were definitely invited!”</p>
<p>            “Hilda,” Edelgard growls. “What is going on?”</p>
<p>            “I thought I’d invite along the Blue Lions,” Hilda says with a pout. “It isn’t fair that they miss out on the fun.”</p>
<p>            “You weren’t even invited originally!” Edelgard exclaims. </p>
<p>            “Uh . . .” Sylvain turns to the others. “Does any one of you understand what’s going on?”</p>
<p>            “Not really,” Felix shrugs. </p>
<p>            “We don’t wish to impose,” Dimitri says. “But I suppose there is a misunderstanding of some kind-”</p>
<p>            “No, you’re fine,” Hilda insists. </p>
<p>            “Hilda!” Edelgard growls. </p>
<p>            “Girls? What’s going on?” Sitri comes over and locks eyes with the Blue Lions. She immediately turns around and says, “I’ll go and see if we can fix the air mattress with the hole in it.”</p>
<p>            “See? Sitri’s fine with it,” Hilda smirks. </p>
<p>            “That’s because Sitri is a very nice and hospitable woman but we’re getting to the point where I think having this many people in the farmhouse is a fire hazard!” Edelgard hisses. </p>
<p>            “Hey uh, as interesting as this is,” Sylvain points out. “Can we come in? It’s fucking freezing.” </p>
<p>            “Sure,” Edelgard says coldly. She is about to step aside when she remembers the icy patch, but makes a point to not mention it. </p>
<p>            Sylvain steps in and slips. Felix is fast enough to step out of the way, leaving Sylvain to make a rough landing. </p>
<p>            “Oh,” Edelgard says sarcastically. “Did I forget to mention the icy patch?”</p>
<p>            “I think you did,” Sylvain groans. “My poor ass.”</p>
<p>            “You should probably be more careful, then,” Hilda adds. </p>
<p>            “I’ll try,” Sylvain groans as he stands and glares at Felix. “Thanks for the help.”</p>
<p>            “How’s this my fault?” Felix asks as he brushes past Sylvain.</p>
<p>            “You could have caught him,” Ingrid points out. </p>
<p>            The Blue Lions filter in, bickering as they do so, and gravitate towards the fire Byleth is still huddled by. Ingrid stops at the door, looking a bit nervous before asking, “So uh, how many people are here?”</p>
<p>            “15,” Edelgard answers. “Well, 19 now including you four.”</p>
<p>            “So . . . all of the Black Eagles are here?” Ingrid continues. “Including Dorothea?”</p>
<p>            As ecstatic as Edelgard is that Ingrid is asking about Dorothea specifically, especially with the latter’s crush, it’s overshadowed by Hilda as she smirks and says, “Of course! Now, go warm up by the fire.” Hilda glances over at Edelgard to catch her glare, “And also check in on Byleth.”</p>
<p>            “What happened to her?”</p>
<p>            “Fell through the ice while playing hockey,” Edelgard says. “Please tell her I’ll be back in a minute. I need to . . . <em>talk</em> to Hilda.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard grabs Hilda’s arm and drags her out to the front porch without another word, all while the latter complains, “Hey, ouch! Lemme grab my coat it’s super fucking cold out!”</p>
<p>            She slams the door and demands, “<em>Explain.</em>”</p>
<p>            “Explain what?” Hilda asks, trying to sound innocent. </p>
<p>            “Don’t play dumb,” Edelgard growls. “Why are the Blue Lions here?”</p>
<p>            “I don’t see why this is a problem for you,” Hilda sighs as she shivers, rubbing her arms to try and keep warm. “And isn’t it obvious? I invited them because-”</p>
<p>            Suddenly, the door quickly opens and slams again as Dorothea joins them on the porch, “Hey Hilda, <em>why the fuck is Ingrid here</em>?”</p>
<p>            Hilda smirks, “Because of that.”</p>
<p>            “I cannot believe that you invited my crush here!” Dorothea hisses, her breath forming into vapor in the air. “What is wrong with you!?”</p>
<p>            “Well, you obviously needed a push,” Hilda says. </p>
<p>            “You do,” Edelgard mutters, hoping that Hilda doesn’t hear her agreeing with her. </p>
<p>            “Don’t you start,” Dorothea threatens. </p>
<p>            “I said nothing.”</p>
<p>            “You have been avoiding Ingrid since the Halloween party and it’s getting annoying when you should just kiss them and get this annoying dance you’re doing over with,” Hilda continues. “You were trying to get away from them, so I brought them to you.” </p>
<p>            “Hilda, you have no right trying to meddle in my love life like this,” Dorothea insists. </p>
<p>            “This is the pot calling the kettle black,” Edelgard points out. Dorothea herself is a notorious meddler, and had a hand in pushing Edelgard and Byleth together (thankfully, that worked out for the better). </p>
<p>            Dorothea glares at her, “Not. Helping.” </p>
<p>            “Well, Ingrid is here now and there’s nothing you can do about it,” Hilda says. She waggles a finger at Edelgard, “However, I don’t see why you’re getting your knickers in a twist.”</p>
<p>            “Hilda,” Edelgard begins. “Dimitri is my half-brother. Remember?”</p>
<p>            It’s no secret that Edelgard has a strained relationship with her blood family. Her father was a serial womanizer and had a dozen kids all vying for their share of his fortune, her mother married a man Edelgard didn’t really care for and had unrealistic expectations for her daughter. That left Edelgard’s relationship with her half-brother a bit nebulous, something never really defined but she avoided doing so out of fear for the worst. </p>
<p>            “Ohhhhhhh,” Hilda says with wide eyes. “Huh. I forgot. Uh . . . sorry?” </p>
<p>            Edelgard and Dorothea just glare at Hilda, who isn’t backing down under the combined pressure. She gets a break when Jeralt returns from chopping firewood, gazing at the three of them with a raised brow, “Uh, what’s going on here?”</p>
<p>            “Hilda invited the Blue Lions over without telling anyone,” Edelgard reveals. </p>
<p>            “To try and get me and someone together,” Dorothea continues. </p>
<p>            “And another of the Blue Lions happens to be my half-brother whom I do not have that great of a relationship with.” </p>
<p>            “Wow,” Hilda says. “Thanks for throwing me under the bus like that, guys.”</p>
<p>            Jeralt stares at the three of them and says, “I’m going to pretend that I understand what’s going on. Are there more people staying over?”</p>
<p>            “Four more,” Edelgard confirms. “I’m sorry, I didn’t expect so many people to join us on our holiday.”</p>
<p>            “It ain’t your fault kid,” Jeralt insists. “But it sounds like I may have to fix the hole in that other air mattress.”</p>
<p>            All three women nod their heads. </p>
<p>            “Well, let’s all get inside,” Jeralt says. “It’s cold enough to freeze your Winnebago.”</p>
<p>            “Finally!” Hilda declares, and runs inside. Jeralt follows, leaving Edelgard and Dorothea out on the porch for another moment. </p>
<p>            “Maybe this isn’t a bad thing,” Dorothea suggests, sounding like she’s trying to convince herself more than Edelgard. “The holidays are a time for family to come together, right? Maybe you and Dimitri and reconcile, or whatever?”</p>
<p>            “And you can confess to Ingrid?” Edelgard checks. </p>
<p>            “You know, we really should get inside it’s super fucking cold,” Dorothea makes an act of rubbing her arms and shivering. </p>
<p>            “After you. And watch out for the icy patch.”</p>
<p>            Inside, more people have come downstairs to greet the Blue Lions. It looks like someone found a collection of old board games and Claude is leading the effort in trying to figure out how to play them. </p>
<p>            While Edelgard does enjoy board games, she spots Dimitri in the crowd of people, trying to assemble a game called ‘Kerplunk’ while not breaking the old plastic pieces. She also notices that Byleth is nowhere to be seen in the sea of faces.</p>
<p>            “Edelgard,” Hubert approaches her. “It seems that we have another crew of unexpected guests.”</p>
<p>            “We do,” Edelgard sighs. No one knows about her family situation better than Hubert, having been her friend through the worst of it. </p>
<p>            “Well, Byleth is in the kitchen, if you are wondering,” he continues. “And, I have something I’d like to show you.”</p>
<p>            The kitchen is the perfect place to get away from the crowd, so she follows him, Dorothea tagging along too. </p>
<p>            In the kitchen, Sitri is preparing dinner while Byleth sits at the table, her blanket cocoon around her. Lysithea sits next to her, nursing a hot chocolate with way too many marshmallows (but Edelgard won’t judge). On the table is one of Edelgard’s favorite games: Dice Throne. </p>
<p>            “Did you bring up your set of Dice Throne?” Edelgard asks Hubert. </p>
<p>            He smirks, “I thought if we had time, we could play a game or two. Byleth and Lysithea have already agreed to join us, so Dorothea you can just watch if you don’t wish to play.” </p>
<p>            “I’ll play,” Dorothea shrugs. “I still don’t understand it, but I assume the two experts will help me out.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard goes and sits next to Byleth, who pulls her into the blanket cocoon and asks, “Are you doing alright?”</p>
<p>            “I am,” Edelgard glances out the doorway into the living room. “For now. But let’s focus on the game. Who are you going to play as?” </p>
<p>            “I’ll take the Strategist,” Byleth says. “You going to play as the Vampire Lord?”</p>
<p>            “As always,” Edelgard confirms. “What about you, Lysithea?” </p>
<p>            “I’ll do the Moon Elf, for now,” Lysithea says. “But I might switch to Artificer if we play another round.”</p>
<p>            “That’s a hard one,” Hubert advises as he grabs the Shadow Thief, his usual choice.</p>
<p>            “Maybe I like the challenge,” Lysithea counters.</p>
<p>            “That leaves you, Dorothea,” Edelgard says as her friend looks over the selection. Eventually, Dorothea shrugs and grabs the Cursed Pirate. </p>
<p>            “She’s hot,” Dorothea justifies her choice.</p>
<p>            The five sit down to play. Their game lasts through dinner, and Claude and Sylvain join them for the second game. For a while Edelgard is able to forget about her worries. Sadly, they’ll be there waiting for her tomorrow, on Christmas Eve.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thanks for reading! If you liked this, please leave a comment! The next and final chapter should be up on Christmas Day!</p>
<p>If you want to hear more from me, I'm trying to be more active about writing on Twitter. So, if you want to see WIPs or general updates or my inane ramblings, follow me <a href="https://twitter.com/Sniperdoodle12">@Sniperdoodle12</a>. I hope you all have a good day and happy holidays!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. for the holidays you can't beat home sweet home</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It's Christmas Eve at the Eisner farmhouse. Will Edelgard talk to her step-brother? Will Dorothea ever confess to Ingrid? And will any other uninvited guests show up?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Merry Christmas and happy holidays! Thank-you for reading and making it to the last chapter! I've wanted to write a Christmas fanfic for years and I guess all the stars aligned this year to make this possible. Please, enjoy this chapter and watch out for the icy patch!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>            Edelgard wakes up on Christmas Eve with equal feelings of excitement and dread.</p>
<p>            On one hand, she’s going to spend the day with her family and girlfriend, enjoying the holiday together. </p>
<p>            On the other hand, Dimitri is here and Edelgard doesn’t know how to feel about that or what to do about it.</p>
<p>            Byleth draws her out of her thoughts by poking her forehead, “You’re thinking very hard for so early in the morning, especially if it woke you up before me.”</p>
<p>            “Sorry,” Edelgard says. </p>
<p>            “There’s nothing to be sorry about,” Byleth insists. “Are you really doing alright?” Edelgard doesn’t respond, just tucks her face into Byleth’s chest to avoid looking at her. She begins to run her fingers through Edelgard’s brown hair, “You can tell me anything.” </p>
<p>            Edelgard knows this, but it’s nice to be reminded that. With a deep breath, she admits, “I don’t know what to do about Dimitri being here.”</p>
<p>            Byleth doesn’t say anything, just continues combing through Edelgard’s hair. The familiar gesture is comforting, so she continues. </p>
<p>            “It’s much easier to avoid him at Garreg Mach, the campus is so big. But now we’re in cramped quarters. There’s going to be no getting away from him.”</p>
<p>            “Why are you avoiding him?” Byleth softly asks. She’s always able to cut to the core issue of the problem, and never holds back. </p>
<p>            “You know about my family,” Edelgard says. </p>
<p>            “I do,” Byleth nods. “But, you yourself have said that he isn’t a bad person. We both know that. You two might have more in common than you realize, you both survived your families. Maybe it’s time to extend the olive branch. It is the season for peace and love, after all.”</p>
<p>            Deep down, Edelgard knew that that was what Byleth was going to say. She closes her eyes, “But what if he rejects the olive branch? What if he rejects me?” Just like her siblings, her mother, and the rest of her blood family? And like always, she’ll be alone.</p>
<p>            “Well, then fuck him,” Byleth admits. She continues, and it’s almost like she can read Edelgard’s mind, “But you won’t be alone. Your real family will always be here for you. I’ll be here for you. Now is just the time to take the chance and see if he’d like to be a part of your family.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard doesn’t know what to say, so she leans up and kisses Byleth. When they need to part for air, she mutters, “I love you.”</p>
<p>            “I love you too,” Byleth says with a smile. She goes in for another kiss, but stops when they’re interrupted. </p>
<p>            “Aw, you two are cute.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard jumps in surprise. She forgot that Dorothea is now sleeping on their floor because Ingrid is staying in the office. She asked to stay in their room to avoid her crush. </p>
<p>            “Good morning, Dorothea,” Byleth says, acting like Dorothea just didn’t ruin a tender moment. “How was the floor?”</p>
<p>            “Uncomfortable,” Dorothea admits. “But Edie, I think you should just talk to Dimitri. Nothing bad happened the last few times you’ve shared small talk with him, maybe you two need to just clear the air.” </p>
<p>            “That’s funny advice coming from you,” Edelgard counters. “Ms. Changes-Rooms-To-Avoid-My-Crush.”</p>
<p>            “Now, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she insists. “It was getting crowded in the office and it’s a bit unfair that you two get a whole room to yourselves.”</p>
<p>            “Dorothea,” Byleth says. “You should really just ask Ingrid out.”</p>
<p>            “Now that’s a ridiculous proposition.”</p>
<p>            “Really?”</p>
<p>            She lets out a deep sigh, “Fine. Maybe I should. But . . .”</p>
<p>            “All your other romances ended badly?” Edelgard rolls over to look her friend in the eye. </p>
<p>            “Bad is putting it politely,” Dorothea mutters. “It’s clear you know my track record with my past flings. I really like Ingrid and I don’t want to mess it up.”</p>
<p>            “I know,” Edelgard says. “But you might miss out on something great if you don’t try.”</p>
<p>            Dorothea pouts, “Really? You’re hitting me with my own advice?”</p>
<p>            “Hey, it worked to get me and Byleth together,” Edelgard smirks. </p>
<p>            “Uhg, that’s fair,” Dorothea groans. She runs her hands down her face, “Alright, I’ll consider asking her out.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard sighs, “I guess that’s a step in the right direction.”</p>
<p>            Byleth’s stomach growling cuts into the conversation, “Are you two getting hungry?”</p>
<p>            After a pause, Dorothea admits, “I could eat.”</p>
<p>            Unlike yesterday, Byleth and Edelgard are some of the first people down to breakfast (Dorothea decides to take advantage of the free bathroom so she is delayed). Sitri and Jeralt greet them, and the former is already brewing tea for them. </p>
<p>            Slowly, everyone else comes down and joins them. Edelgard stays down there until Dimitri descends from the attic, which is when she excuses herself to go get ready. In the shower, she tries to hype herself up, repeating Byleth’s and Dorothea’s words: <em>just go talk to him</em>. </p>
<p>            After doing her best to not hog the shower, Edelgard heads back downstairs, head held high. Byleth is at the foot of the stairs, talking with Hubert, but stops to say, “Are you going to talk to him?”</p>
<p>            “Who’s him?” Hubert questions. </p>
<p>            “I’m going to talk to Dimitri,” Edelgard says with unwavering determination. </p>
<p>            “Talk to me about what?” Dimitri asks as he rounds the corner. </p>
<p>            Edelgard blinks. She would have liked another second to prepare, but she steels herself and says, “Dimitri, can we talk? Maybe out on the porch, where it’s private?” </p>
<p>            Dimitri raises an eyebrow, but nods, “Of course. Let me grab my jacket.”</p>
<p>            As he walks away, Byleth pulls her into a hug and gives her a kiss, “Good job! I’m proud of you.”</p>
<p>            “Thank-you, Byleth,” Edelgard kisses her back. “But let me grab my jacket.”</p>
<p>            “Oh right.”</p>
<p>            Byleth releases her, and Hubert says, “I don’t quite know what’s going on but . . . good luck.”</p>
<p>            “Thank-you, Hubert.”</p>
<p>            When Dimitri returns, the two of them step out onto the porch. Despite grabbing a jacket this time, the cold still bites. Edelgard opens her mouth, but Dimitri beats her to it. </p>
<p>            “Before we start,” he says. “I’d like to apologize. I . . . don’t quite know what Hilda is up to, but if I had known that we weren’t formally invited we wouldn’t have come-”</p>
<p>            “It’s fine, Dimitri,” Edelgard says with a small smile. “To be fair, technically Byleth’s parents were only expecting me and her, so everyone’s uninvited. However, they’re very accommodating.”</p>
<p>            “They are very nice,” Dimitri nods. </p>
<p>            The only thing that fills the air is their breath, turning into vapor as the silence settles. Edelgard decides to take the lead, “They are nice, unlike our own parents.”</p>
<p>            Dimitri’s eyes go wide. He knows that she doesn’t like talking about their family, considering how many times she deflected the topic back in their freshman year at Garreg Mach. She’s sure he had given up on this long ago. </p>
<p>            “I don’t like being that harsh, but I know that they’re not the . . . greatest people,” Dimitri agrees. “But I also don’t know much about your father’s side of the family.” </p>
<p>            “You probably shouldn’t get me started on that,” Edelgard admits. “But, just, after a while I got . . . tired of being rejected by them. My parents, my siblings . . . that I was afraid to let anyone else pass my walls. To hurt me by leaving again. That has changed, the Black Eagles and Byleth are my family now but . . . I realized that I never gave you a chance.”</p>
<p>            “What are you saying?” Dimitri asks. </p>
<p>            “You’re my step-sibling,” Edelgard says. “Maybe it’s time we start to act like family rather than strangers.”</p>
<p>            Dimitri smiles, “I would like that-” <em>CRASH! </em>“-What was that?!”</p>
<p>            Edelgard steps over to the window and glances in, “. . . I think Caspar introduced Felix to concept of mistle-foe.”</p>
<p>            “Wha-what’s mistle-foe?”</p>
<p>            “You fight instead of kissing under the mistletoe.”</p>
<p>            “. . . Okay, I see why Felix would agree to that. Do we need to step in?”</p>
<p>            “It looks like Jeralt is pulling them apart. And they haven’t destroyed the Christmas tree, that’s good.”</p>
<p>            The front door opens slightly and Byleth sticks her head out, “Everything’s fine in here, please continue your family reunion!” </p>
<p>            She disappears as soon as she comes, but some muffled shouting comes through the walls. Edelgard turns to Dimitri and sighs, “So, where were we?”</p>
<p>            “We were talking about fam-” Dimitri gets cut off again, as he looks down the drive. “Is that another car pulling up?”</p>
<p>            “<em>Fucking Sothis</em>,” Edelgard hisses. The car is nice, more expensive than any poor college student can afford, but she still asks Dimitri, “Are any of the other Blue Lions coming up?”</p>
<p>            “No,” Dimitri says. “It kinda looks like Lorenz’s car?”</p>
<p>            “If it’s Lorenz I’m forcing him to drive back home.”</p>
<p>            It’s not Lorenz. Instead, the car door opens and it’s the last person either of them expected: Rhea Seiros, the Dean of Garreg Mach University. </p>
<p>            “What is Rhea doing here?!” Edelgard hisses to Dimitri. </p>
<p>            “I don’t know,” Dimitri shrugs. “A prank from Claude?”</p>
<p>            “No, he wouldn’t want the Dean here,” Edelgard insists. </p>
<p>            The door to the farmhouse opens again but this time Sitri steps out. She glances over at Edelgard and Dimitri and asks, “What are you two doing out here?”</p>
<p>            “We just wanted to talk in privacy,” Edelgard says. “But, uhm, hopefully you don’t mind me asking but why is Dean Seiros here?”</p>
<p>            “Byleth didn’t tell you?” Sitri asks. “Rhea’s my cousin. I suppose I forgot in all the chaos to tell you all that she was coming up for the holidays too.”</p>
<p>            Rhea scans the porch as she walks up, looking slightly confused as she sees Edelgard Dimitri (as they are the leaders of two of the biggest coed fraternities on campus), but turns to her cousin first, “Hello Sitri, it’s been too long.”</p>
<p>            “Ah, it’s good to see you too Rhea!” Sitri pulls her into a hug. “I’m glad you could come up; I know how busy you are.”</p>
<p>            “I’ll always have time to see family,” Rhea insists. She glances back at Dimitri and Edelgard and says, “But I must ask . . . why are some of my students here?”</p>
<p>            “It’s good to see you too, Dean Seiros,” Edelgard sighs. </p>
<p>            “Well, Edelgard is dating Byleth,” Sitri begins. “And . . . Byleth decided to bring some of her friends up for the holidays.” </p>
<p>            Rhea raises an eyebrow, so Edelgard suggests, “You should see it for yourself.”</p>
<p>            “What does that mean?”</p>
<p>            “Why don’t you come inside?” Sitri asks. She opens the door and heads in before Rhea. </p>
<p>Like so many before her, Rhea falls victim to the icy patch and slips. Dimitri runs forward and manages to catch her before she hits her head, but Edelgard doesn’t do anything. As he helps her up, Rhea hisses, “I always forget about that damn icy patch.” </p>
<p>            “It’s there every winter!” Sitri insists as the door closes. </p>
<p>            Edelgard turns to Dimitri and laughs, “How many people back at Garreg Mach will believe that we ended up spending Christmas with the Dean?” </p>
<p>            “Very few,” Dimitri says. “But, if we don’t get interrupted again, we were talking about family.”</p>
<p>            “Yes,” Edelgard nods. </p>
<p>            “I’d like to act more like step-siblings, rather than strangers,” Dimitri admits. “I miss having family.”</p>
<p>            “You do have Ingrid, Felix, Sylvain and the rest of the Blue Lions too,” Edelgard reminds him. </p>
<p>            He smiles, “That’s right, I do. And now we have each other.” </p>
<p>            “We do,” Edelgard smiles. </p>
<p>            The door creaks open for a third time, and Byleth sticks her head out, “So, are you too good?”</p>
<p>            “Yes, we’re good,” Edelgard laughs. </p>
<p>            “Good!” Byleth wanders out and hugs Edelgard. “Also, I forgot that Rhea was coming and Claude’s out on the back porch losing his mind because he didn’t realize I was related to her.”</p>
<p>            “To be fair, we didn’t either,” Dimitri admits. </p>
<p>            “Oh. I guess I never brought it up,” Byleth shrugs. “Anyways, Hubert brought out Dice Throne because Lysithea and Dorothea wanted to play more. Wanna join us?”</p>
<p>            “Dice Throne?” Dimitri asks. </p>
<p>            “It’s one of El’s favorite games,” Byleth interjects. </p>
<p>            “It’s very good,” Edelgard sighs. “I’ll admit, it doesn’t quite make sense until you play it, but you might like it. Sylvain played with us last night.”</p>
<p>            “Sounds like fun,” Dimitri admits. “I’ll play.”</p>
<p>            The three head inside, and Edelgard now has another member of her patch-work family. </p><hr/>
<p>            After a brutal 2v2v2 battle of Dice Throne, they had lunch, but Edelgard noticed that Claude and Hilda were both absent. She doesn’t think too much of it now, since there’s other things to pay attention to. </p>
<p>            Mainly the fact that Dorothea’s still avoiding Ingrid. </p>
<p>            It got so bad that Ingrid even came to Edelgard to make sure that she’s alright. Edelgard did her best to explain to them without outing her friend’s crush, but this is getting ridiculous. </p>
<p>            After lunch, Byleth and Edelgard remain in the kitchen, sitting at the table while everyone else is in the living room watching a movie. </p>
<p>            “I hate to meddle in my friend’s love life, but we need to do something,” Edelgard says.</p>
<p>            “She needs a push,” Byleth suggests. </p>
<p>            “Like what?”</p>
<p>            Byleth shrugs, “Don’t know.”</p>
<p>            Their private conversation is interrupted when Claude enters the kitchen through the back door, carrying a large, unwrapped box and a smoothie.</p>
<p>            “Hey Claude,” Edelgard asks. “What do you have there?”</p>
<p>            Claude smirks and waves the hand holding his drink, “A smoothie.”</p>
<p>            He continues walking, and Edelgard says, “I don’t like that look on his face.”</p>
<p>            “That is his scheming face,” Byleth admits. </p>
<p>            Then, Hilda enters through the same door, carrying an identical box. Edelgard wants to get to the bottom of this, but she is surprised to see that Hilda’s carrying a big box of . . . something, since she usually pretends that she’s allergic to any form of work, “Hilda. Come over here.” </p>
<p>            “Edie, I’m kinda busy,” Hilda insists. </p>
<p>            “Too bad.”</p>
<p>            With a loud sigh, Hilda walks over, “Fine. What do you want?”</p>
<p>            “Whatever you and Claude are doing to get Dorothea and Ingrid together,” Edelgard begins. “Byleth and I want in.”</p>
<p>             “Oh jeez, I thought you were about to bust my balls over it,” Hilda sighs. </p>
<p>            “Dorothea is getting ridiculous about all of this and she needs a push.” </p>
<p>            “What’s in the box?” Byleth adds. </p>
<p>            “I’m glad you asked!” Hilda deposits the box in Byleth’s arms. Edelgard curiously opens one of the flaps. </p>
<p>            “Mistletoe?” Edelgard questions. </p>
<p>            “Yep,” Hilda nods. “That needs to go <em>everywhere</em>. Dorothea and Ingrid can’t avoid kissing one another if the entire house is covered in a social convention.”</p>
<p>            “What about everyone else?” Edelgard asks. </p>
<p>            “Listen,” Hilda puts her hands on her waist. “Do you want to try and get those two together or not?”</p>
<p>            “Fine,” Edelgard sighs. “This’ll work.”</p>
<p>            “Great!” Hilda claps her hands together. “You two get started on that and I’ll-”</p>
<p>            Edelgard grabs Hilda’s shoulder as she tries to turn around and leave,” Oh no. You’re not getting out of this.”</p>
<p>            “I think you just wrenched my shoulder-”</p>
<p>            “No. I didn’t. All three of us-four if Claude is still in on this-will be putting up all this mistletoe,” Edelgard states. “No worming your way out of this.”</p>
<p>            “Uhg,” Hilda sighs. “<em>Fine</em>.” </p>
<p>            They join Claude in the living room, who has already rallied Hubert and Ferdinand into lending a hand as well. After they cover the living room in mistletoe, more join in, and within an hour the entire house is decked out in mistletoe. </p>
<p>            Rhea looks up from the couch at the ceiling, nursing a mug of hot chocolate, and asks, “Do I want to know what’s going on?”</p>
<p>            “No,” Edelgard says. “Probably not.”</p>
<p>            Byleth comes up from behind her and kisses Edelgard’s cheek as she wraps her arms around her waist, “Even if this mistletoe idea is a bust, I’d still consider it a win for us.”</p>
<p>            Edelgard turns around and smiles, “You just like having an excuse to kiss me a lot.”</p>
<p>            “Maybe,” Byleth admits, and leans in for another kiss.</p>
<p>            “Can you two please not do this in front of my hot chocolate?” Rhea asks. </p>
<p>            “Oh, come on Rhea,” Sitri says. “They’re young and in love. Jeralt and I were like that once.”</p>
<p>            As if on cue, Jeralt stops by her side and kisses her cheek. He looks at the ceiling and sighs, “Do you really need this much mistletoe?”</p>
<p>            “Okay, now this is weird now that my parents are here,” Byleth admits. </p>
<p>            “We can just go into another room,” Edelgard suggests, tugging on her arm. </p>
<p>            “Hold on!” Hilda marches into the living room. “I need you two to stop being gross for like five minutes. This isn’t working.”</p>
<p>            “What do you mean?”</p>
<p>            “Dorothea and Ingrid are <em>still</em> avoiding each other,” Hilda says like Edelgard should be able to read her mind. “Therefore, they are never in the same room, or under any mistletoe.”</p>
<p>            “Is that what this is all about?” Sitri asks. “Getting your friends together?”</p>
<p>            “Yes,” Hilda says. “It’s our civic duty to get those two dumbasses together.”</p>
<p>            “You were right, Edelgard,” Rhea stands up. “I didn’t want to know what’s going on.”</p>
<p>            As she leaves, Sitri eyes the ceiling and suggests, “Well, I think you have the mistletoe part covered. You just have to get them in the same room.”</p>
<p>            “That’s easier said than done,” Edelgard points out. She gets momentarily distracted when the front door opens and Dimitri and Sylvain come in. An idea forms in her head and she calls out, “Dimitri, can you join us for a moment?”</p>
<p>            “Is everything alright?” he asks.</p>
<p>            “Yes,” Edelgard says. “But could you do us a favor?”</p>
<p>            “Like what?”</p>
<p>            “Can you get Ingrid to come to the living room in about twenty minutes?”</p>
<p>            Dimitri raises a brow in confusion, but Sylvain asks, “Does this have to do with all the mistletoe?”</p>
<p>            “We’re gonna get Ingrid and Dottie together,” Hilda reveals. </p>
<p>            “Uhg, finally!” Sylvain exclaims. “You haven’t had to deal with them mooning over Dorothea but doing nothing about it.”</p>
<p>            “No, we’ve just had to deal with Dorothea doing the same,” Edelgard sighs. “So, you’ll help us?”</p>
<p>            “Of course,” Dimitri agrees. “We all want our friends to be happy, so I don’t see why not.”</p>
<p>            “Perfect, me and Byleth will go get Dorothea, while you two get Ingrid,” Edelgard says. “Hilda, make sure the living room stays clear to give them privacy.”</p>
<p>            “That sounds like a lot of work,” Hilda groans. </p>
<p>            “This was your plan.”</p>
<p>            “I can lend a hand,” Sitri offers. “You kids went to all of this effort; I’d don’t mind helping you see it through.”</p>
<p>            “This is where I tag out,” Jeralt declares. “I’m gonna go dig out the record player, since the mistle-foe fight broke the radio.”</p>
<p>            “So, we’ve got a plan,” Edelgard smirks.</p>
<p>            “Operation Dorogrid is a go!” Hilda declares. </p>
<p>            “Dorogrid?” Byleth questions. </p>
<p>            “It’s their ship name.”</p>
<p>            Jeralt sighs, “I don’t understand you kids.”</p><hr/>
<p>            Twenty minutes later, everything falls into place. </p>
<p>            Dorothea was in Byleth’s room. Edelgard lies and says that they’re planning on playing Dice Throne again. That’s enough to get her to come down. </p>
<p>            Ingrid was out back, engaged in a snowball fight with Felix, Caspar, Petra, Leonie, and Bernadetta. Edelgard isn’t sure what Dimitri and Sylvain had to do to get them away, but she doesn’t see Sylvain for a while. </p>
<p>            But now, it’s showtime. </p>
<p>            “So, who else is playing?” Dorothea asks as they walk downstairs. </p>
<p>            “Hubert,” Edelgard says. “And Claude.”</p>
<p>            “Okay.”</p>
<p>            They enter the living room at the same time Dimitri and Ingrid enter from the kitchen. Dorothea freezes and tries to back away, but Byleth and Edelgard stop her. </p>
<p>            “You’ve got this,” Byleth insists her. When she turns to Edelgard, she gives her a reassuring nod. </p>
<p>            Dorothea takes a deep breath and steps into the living room. Edelgard and Byleth step back to give her privacy . . . but still peek around the corner to watch. </p>
<p>            “Uh, hey,” Ingrid begins. They’re still wearing their winter jacket and they fidget with the zipper. </p>
<p>            “Hey,” Dorothea replies with a small smile. She nervously begins to twirl the edge of her hair, a clear tell of how she’s feeling. </p>
<p>            “I . . . haven’t really seen you around,” Ingrid says. </p>
<p>            “I know, sorry,” Dorothea apologizes. “I didn’t mean to avoid you . . . or, well-”</p>
<p>            “JUST KISS ALREADY!” Hilda interrupts, shouting from the kitchen. Dimitri steps in, picking her up and carrying her away. Despite her thrashing, she cannot break free from his bear hug. </p>
<p>            “Ignore her,” Edelgard pokes her head out. “Just take your time.”</p>
<p>            “But just so you know,” Byleth adds. “You are standing under mistletoe. Lots of it, actually.” </p>
<p>            Ingrid and Dorothea stare up at the ceiling simultaneously. The former gasps, “That’s so much mistletoe.”</p>
<p>            “Oh Goddess,” Dorothea hisses and face-palms. “Hilda!”</p>
<p>            “She can’t get to you at the moment!” Dimitri shouts from the kitchen. </p>
<p>            “So, well, I guess with all this mistletoe,” Ingrid is blushing so hard their face looks like a tomato. “We should kiss?”</p>
<p>            Dorothea’s mouth drops and her eyes go wide, but it morphs into a smile, “We should. Can’t break tradition, after all.”</p>
<p>            Ingrid leans in and kisses her, both of them smiling through it. When Ingrid steps back, Dorothea follows them for another quick kiss. </p>
<p>            “So,” Dorothea begins. “Once we get back to Garreg Mach . . . would you like to go on a date with me?”</p>
<p>            “Yes,” Ingrid says immediately and with wide eyes. “Wait, did I say that too fast?” </p>
<p>            “No, you’re perfect,” Dorothea says before kissing them again. She giggles, “I’ll admit, I’m a bit impatient too.”</p>
<p>            “FUCKING FINALLY!” Hilda shouts, now standing in the kitchen doorway. </p>
<p>            Dimitri looms over her and says, “Sorry, she bit my hand.”</p>
<p>            “Hilda!” Edelgard scolds. </p>
<p>            “I wanted to see the kiss!” Hilda exclaims. </p>
<p>            “Did you all really have to watch that?” Dorothea demands. “Can’t a girl get some privacy!?”</p>
<p>            “We went through all of this effort to put up this mistletoe and get you two together,” Hilda says. “Of course, we want to see it through!”</p>
<p>            “You all are incorrigible,” Dorothea sighs. </p>
<p>            “Well . . . maybe we <em>did</em> need a push,” Ingrid admits. </p>
<p>            “You did,” Edelgard says. </p>
<p>            “Congratulations,” Byleth adds. </p>
<p>            “Alright, I found the record player,” Jeralt interrupts as he comes downstairs, carrying an old, bulky record player. He stares at everyone and turns to Byleth, “Did your plan work?”</p>
<p>            “It did,” Byleth nods.</p>
<p>            “Is there anyone that didn’t know about this?” Dorothea asks. </p>
<p>            Edelgard briefly wonders whether it's a good idea to tell her that the Dean of Garreg Mach also knows, but is thankfully stopped as Sylvain trudges in, his face red from the cold and covered in snow. He stares at Ingrid and Dorothea and huffs, “Did you two kiss yet?” </p>
<p>            “Yes,” Ingrid answers. </p>
<p>            “Good,” Sylvain smiles. “Don’t say I don’t ever do anything for you.”</p>
<p>            “Did Felix destroy you during the snowball fight?” Ingrid guesses. </p>
<p>            “No, this was Caspar’s massive-ass snowball,” Sylvain sighs. “It was half the size of him and he tossed it over his head like it was nothing. I thought I was gonna die for a second.”</p>
<p>            “That’s one way to win a snowball fight,” Dimitri sighs.</p>
<p>            “Now that . . .” Jeralt waves one of his hands in the air. “<em>This</em> is all done, can you kids give me a hand? Let’s get this place set up for Christmas Eve.”</p>
<p>            “Does that involve taking down all the mistletoe?” Hilda checks. </p>
<p>            He glances up at the ceiling, “That can stay for now.”</p><hr/>
<p>            About two hours later, after dinner had been served, everyone had squeezed into the living room to celebrate Christmas Eve together.</p>
<p>            A fire is roaring, the Christmas tree is lit up, and though it is dark outside the falling snow makes the woods glow. Jeralt turns the record player on, and music fills the room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>I’ll be home for Christmas</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            He smiles as he watches the record player spin, before returning to the couch to sit next to his wife. Since there’s still plenty of mistletoe on the ceiling, he kisses Sitri’s cheek and she smiles. Sharing the couch with them is Byleth and Edelgard, both of them are as close together as they can manage, with the former practically sitting in the latter’s lap. Edelgard blushes and insists that this is embarrassing, but Byleth quells her with a kiss.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>You can plan on me</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            Hubert doesn’t quite know how he’s losing this game of Dice Throne, since this is only Dimitri’s second game. Hubert is, as always, the Shadow Thief, Claude is the Tactician, Sylvain is the Gunslinger, Hilda is the Vampire Lord, Ferdinand is the Paladin, and Dimitri is the Barbarian. He levels his cold glare at Dimitri as the taller man rolls, and when he gets all sixes, Sylvain and Claude edge him on to take out Hubert. Despite the upsetting turn of events, Hubert knows that’s a smart move since he is the most seasoned player. When Dimitri does so and the Shadow Thief falls, Hubert chalks it up to luck. Ferdinand pats Hubert on the back and insists that Dimitri is a natural. He frowns. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Please have snow and mistletoe</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sitting on the ground are Ingrid and Dorothea, and both of them are still taking advantage of the mistletoe. They sit shoulder to shoulder, their hands tentatively overlapping each other, but every so often one of them turns and kisses the other’s cheek. Hilda sits across from them, smugly smiling every time she catches them kissing until Claude pulls her back into the game of Dice Throne that she definitely doesn’t get. At least the Vampire Lord is hot and Hubert’s out of the game. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>And presents by the tree</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            Despite Bernadetta’s best efforts, she is not able to get away from the festivities, especially when Felix is trying to figure out how she won the snowball fight. He’s still trying to wrap his head around her aim when Caspar laughs and insists that she’s always had a good arm and it’s no surprise that she decked Felix in the head <em>thrice</em>. Felix scowls and criticizes Caspar’s giant snowball, insisting that a snowball fight was about skill. Caspar fires back, saying a snowball fight was about fun. Bernadetta speaks up, saying that she had fun earlier, which is really all that matters. It seems that Felix can’t argue with her and grumbles something under his breath. Caspar couldn’t catch it, but Bernadetta is able to just make out his admittance that he too had fun.  </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Christmas Eve will find me</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            Leonie and Lysithea are explaining an important tradition to Petra: shaking gifts to try and figure out what’s in them. The presents under the tree are plentiful and overflowing, all covered with pretty paper. Petra argues that shaking the present undermines the purpose of it being a surprise, but Leonie tries to insist that it’s just something you do. Lysithea adds that the guesses are usually wrong anyways. Grabbing one of the gifts with her name on it, Petra carefully shakes it and holds it up to her ear, looking very confused. Linhardt, who was napping nearby, says that it’s a new hunting knife. The three girls stare at him as he justifies himself, talking about the sound and shape of the gift. Lysithea sighs, as apparently everyone except <em>Linhardt</em> is wrong.  </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Where the love light gleams</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            Rhea isn’t quite sure how it ended up like this. When her cousin extended an invitation to spend Christmas together, she was expecting a small family gathering, like usual. Jeralt and Byleth would go out to the pond to play some hockey, while she and Sitri could catch up. She did not expect a bunch of her frat students to be here, spending the holidays with her. But, as she glances around the room and sees how happy everyone is together, she can’t help but smile. That or, her spiked eggnog is finally kicking in. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>If only in my dreams</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            As the song ends, Sitri stands up and announces, “May I please have all of your attention?”</p>
<p>            The room quiets, expect for the record player, which begins to play the next song. </p>
<p>            “I’d like to propose a toast,” Sitri says. “I know that this wasn’t quite the Christmas that I was expecting, but it feels like it’s been so long since their house felt so alive. Thank-you all for making this one of the best Christmases we’ve had in a while, and for becoming part of our family.”</p>
<p>            “<em>HERE, HERE!</em>” everyone shouts, raising their own drinks. </p>
<p>            “However,” Sitri continues. “Next year, we’re doing this at Garreg Mach. There’s not enough room here.”</p>
<p>            “That’s fair,” Claude shrugs. “Christmas with the Golden Deer!”</p>
<p>            “Oh no,” Edelgard sits forward. “Your dorm is a mess. There’s more than enough room with the Black Eagles.”</p>
<p>            “Yes, but the members of the Blue Lions can actually cook,” Dimitri counters. “We’ll make a lovely Christmas meal for you all.”</p>
<p>            “You’re all very generous,” Sitri laughs. “But Rhea’s place is big enough for us all.”</p>
<p>            Everyone turns to Rhea, who’s eyes go wide and simply says, “No.”</p>
<p>            “Don’t be a grinch, Rhea,” Sitri frowns. “But we have a year to plan this. Merry Christmas, everyone!”</p>
<p>            As the festivities continue, Byleth leans down and whispers in Edelgard’s ear, “Hey El, do you wanna . . . step away for a bit?”</p>
<p>            Edelgard furrows her brows, “Is everything alright?”</p>
<p>            “Yeah,” Byleth nods, “I just . . . wanna have you to myself for a bit.”</p>
<p>            “Alright,” Edelgard smiles. </p>
<p>            The two excuse themselves, and Edelgard watches as Byleth grabs their coats with a raised brow. The latter only smirks, and leads Edelgard through the kitchen and out to the back porch. </p>
<p>            Outside, it’s cold enough to freeze your Winnebago but the view is perfect. Snow continues to fall, making a perfect blanket of white. The moon breaks through the clouds, and the still forest seems to gleam for a moment. </p>
<p>            “Wow,” Edelgard gasps. “It’s so beautiful.”</p>
<p>            “And so are you,” Byleth says, staring directly at her. </p>
<p>            Edelgard smiles as she steps closer to Byleth, taking her hand, “So why did you want to come out here?”</p>
<p>            “I really did want to be alone with you for a bit,” Byleth says. “And I wanted to give you my Christmas gift early.” </p>
<p>            “You couldn’t wait?” Edelgard teases. </p>
<p>            “I wanted it to be just us,” Byleth says. She lets go of Edelgard’s hand to reach for something in her pocket, “So, I know we’ve been talking a lot lately, about the future and stuff. We both want to get college done before we take the next step in our relationship so I thought that, uh, a promise ring would be a nice gift.” Edelgard gasps as Byleth pulls out the ring box, opening it to show her a golden band with two gemstones, one red and one blue. Byleth grins, “I hope it isn’t too cheesy.”</p>
<p>            “With the pick-up line you said earlier, it’s the perfect amount of cheesy,” Edelgard admits. “Byleth, I love it.”</p>
<p>            “I’m glad,” she takes Edelgard’s hand and removes one glove, so she can slide the ring on. “And I’m also glad it fits. But I promise that I’ll stay by your side, and the next steps we take, that I’ll take them together with you.”</p>
<p>            “Byleth,” Edelgard mutters, trying to do her best to not cry (mainly because the tears might just freeze to her face). For the longest time, Edelgard thought that she might be alone forever, learning to wall herself off after her family taught her the meaning of loneliness. Byleth was the one who started to break down those walls, and this promise means a lot to her. </p>
<p>            “I love you El,” Byleth says, squeezing her hands. </p>
<p>            “I love you too,” Edelgard leans in and kisses Byleth. </p>
<p>            The two of them stay on the porch for a while, holding each other and watching the snowfall. </p>
<p>            “So,” Edelgard begins. “I’m guessing you didn’t want to do this inside because everyone was going to get the wrong idea.”</p>
<p>            “Oh yeah,” Byleth says, and Edelgard laughs. “I love our family but they can be dramatic.”</p>
<p>            “No kidding,” Edelgard sighs. “But let’s head back inside before they do get the wrong idea.”</p>
<p>            “Okay, and we don’t want to miss the Christmas pinata.”</p>
<p>            “Yeah . . . wait, what?”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Once again, thank-you for reading. If you're reading this on Christmas, I hope you have a happy holiday and if you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you have a good day nonetheless. </p>
<p>If you'd like to hear more from me, you can follow me on Twitter at <a href="https://twitter.com/Sniperdoodle12"> @Sniperdoodle12</a> or, I've just revamped my Tumblr so you can find me there at sniperdoodle (the html isn't working, sorry). </p>
<p>That's it from me. A nice Christmas gift for me would be leaving a comment if you enjoyed this fic! And once again, watch out for the icy patch.</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading, and leave a comment to keep me alive as I face down my remaining finals. If you want to hear more from me, I'm trying to be a bit more active on Twitter so follow me <a href="https://twitter.com/Sniperdoodle12">@Sniperdoodle12</a>. I made a logo for this fic but I don't know how to code in html so it'll be on my Twitter, please look at it I spent a lot of time making it. I hope all of y'all have a good day and be careful of the icy patch!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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